


Leo's Faith

by Alonia143



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2003)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-17
Updated: 2016-12-18
Packaged: 2018-08-31 13:32:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 36,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8580469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alonia143/pseuds/Alonia143
Summary: Night after night, Leo would go and visit Arienne and develop their friendship slowly. By sharing their deepest and darkest secrets. Leo/OC. Set within the 2k3 series. Please Read & Review, Thank you.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In the beginning of the first One-shot; Leo's Faith, Arienne Lyn talks about wanting to die, but never follows through with it thanks to the help of Leonardo. I know that this is a touchy subject but it's the reason with other one-shot chapters to come, that the rating is rated: MATURE. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and I do not make any money of this story.

Leo's Faith:

The cars that were zooming down this lane and up that one were a soft hum in the starless night of the sleepless New York City. People were either heading to work, heading to dinner or heading straight to bed. The streets were packed but that didn't really bother him.

' _Just as long as they don't look up and stare for too long,'_ he thought to himself as he leaped off of a roof top that was only two blocks from his home.

His breathing was fast, his heart rapidly pounded away in his chest trying to get oxygen to his legs and brain. However, he wasn't tired from running from one rooftop to the next. His training had given him a lot of stamina and even though a good long dueling with his younger hotheaded brother would beat it down, this, running, was nothing.

"Leo, status report," he heard from his shell cell as he slowly came to a halt on one rooftop.

Leo grabbed his shell cell from his waist belt.

"Yes Donny, over," He replied to his young brother.

"Nothing to report on North side of town. Raph had a few run-ins with the Purple Dragons but they didn't tell him anything. Mikey is still on his route and I will check in with him after I am done talking with you," Donny informed him as Leo heavily sighed.

"Donny, we have to make sure that they aren't going to do anything stupid. Just because the Shredder is no more we have to keep an eye on the other gangs within New York City. Keep looking and tell Raph not to get into any sorts of fights, they'll be hot tempered as he is if not more. Team up with him after you get a report from Mikey," he replied back to Donny, though he was a little irritated with Raph.

"On it," Donny said before he got off.

Leo shook his head and looked around where he was. This part of town was very classy, even to the humans that were living here. It was a small-gated community and where he was standing, Central Park sort of extended into the backyards of the people who lived here.

Before he was ready to jump, he saw something from the left corner of his left eye. It was fast movement and what he saw was a young woman jumping from a rooftop.

Leo's heart was lodged up in his throat and he acted on instinct alone. He ran as if his life depended on it towards the young woman.

Luckily, when he jumped onto the same rooftop that she had jumped off of it had shadows from the trees and the long branches had grown very close to the street so no one would know that he was there. He looked downward, hoping his fears didn't come true. However, what greeted him also shocked him. The young woman wasn't dead. Splattered all over the street.

"Where are you?" he asked to himself.

"I think you should be asking is, who are you but, I could be reaching for it," he heard a very soft but firm voice to his left.

Looking towards the voice, he saw from the shadows of the trees a young woman on a swing. She was probably, by his guessing, around 5'4. Her body looked to have hourglass curves, long dark brown hair that went to her shoulder blades and her fierier brown chestnut eyes that made Leo swallow. She was beautiful, flawless skin that glowed against the streetlights and the clear glass windows where she probably lived.

"I thought you had jumped off of the rooftop," he truthfully told her.

"What? Why would I do something like that? Although I have thought on it many times," she replied back but still sat on the swing.

"I caught you from the corner of my eye and I raced over here to catch you but, I knew I was already too late," he answered her, further explaining to her.

She looked at him and a soft faint blush appeared on her face. A soft breeze blew from where she was sitting over to where Leo was crouching. The soft but heavenly perfume that she had on was almost mouth watering. It was a warm vanilla, a rose or cheery blossom mixture. Whatever it was, it almost made Leo loose his footing on the branch.

"So really, who are you?" she asked him carefully going back to the first question.

Leo's eyes looked at her. Even though she was beautiful and smelled like that of wonderful flower, he also noticed that she was in nothing more than shorts and a nice blouse.

Jumping down from the branch, he softly landed on the rooftop but stayed within the shadows. The young woman kept her eyes on him the whole time that he moved from the branch to behind her.

He moved only where the shadows of the old tree gave him and it was only a few feet from where this young woman sat, now facing him fully.

"I am Leonardo. I am out on a routine patrol with my three younger brothers. Now, who are you?" he replied back to her but not revealing too much information at once.

"Arianne Lyn. I came up here because my parents are arguing again," she told him until they both heard voices coming from her bedroom that was under their feet.

"Arianne Lyn, you better not be up there on that blasted swing of yours again! If you are, I will cut the branch off, like I did last time!" a very livid and intimidating male voice rose up through the open window.

"Oh no," she whispered and then quickly got off of the swing and darted towards the tree branches exactly where Leo was.

She climbed her way through the limbs of the tree and then all was still. Leo was very thankful that he was now over one house though he hoped that Arianne was all right since it looked like her father had a flashlight with him. Her father combed the tree for her even though she wasn't there.

Leo looked at the house that he was at and thankfully, the window was open next to a office. Taking a pad of paper and a pen, he very quickly wrote his thoughts and waited for Arianne's father to be gone however, he did hear the very loud and stressful voices of Arianne's mother, Arianne herself fighting back and then her father who soon joined in. It didn't settle well with Leo that two parents would gain up on their only child like this. The arguing lasted for half an hour.

He slowly waited until all of the arguing had stopped and the lights were turned off. Soft sniffling and crying sounds came from the swing area, creeping over to it, he saw Arianne with her back towards him softly crying to herself. His heart went out to her. He wanted to hold her in his arms although he knew that was impossible because of what he was. He wasn't a human like Arianne or her parents. No. He was a turtle. A mutant teenage turtle.

"Arianne?" he softly whispered to her concerned.

"Just go away," she whispered back.

"I can't. Not after what I saw and heard from my spot," he replied back.

She didn't say anything just softly cried to herself. Leo was at a total loss here. He truly wanted to hold her in his arms and comfort her. Letting her know that whatever it is that her parents have against her, it will turn all right in the end.

"I uhm…I have this piece of paper for you. It's the number to my s-cell phone, you can call me any time whenever they are hurting you," he softly told her and walked towards her.

"Why do you care?" she asked him, still hurting.

"Because," he barely whispered very close to her ear. "Someone has to for you to live,"

"What if I don't want to live? What if I want to end it?" she asked him her eyes were closed as thick heavy tears trickled down her beautiful face.

Heavily sighing Leo then clenched his jaw, hard. How dare her own parents, who have no right to treat their only daughter in such a fashion. She has no one turn to, no one to turn to help whenever they gain up on her like this. It made Leo's blood run scolding hot.

"Then you will be giving up on not just yourself but also on me as well," he firmly stated to her.

"But you don't even know me! How can you have so much faith in a broken person?" she cried softly, her tears were now running freely down her face.

"I may not know you though I do not want you to give up on yourself. I do not want you to think that death will be the answer to everything to life because it's not. Yes the pain that you are feeling is hard to handle and a lot to take in, however, in the end, you will have a better life. What your parents are doing is wrong, Arianne, and you know it too. Please don't kill yourself because"

"My oldest brother is off in college with a family of his own and I am still stuck at home because I can't get into college. My parents won't let me go to college. They want me to work the nasty jobs that I have worked through my high school years and never be like my oldest brother is," she cut him off.

Leo's mouth went dry very suddenly and his hands very gently gripped the ropes of the swing until his knuckles turned a very pale green.

"Why would they do that to you? I thought they loved you to the point where it didn't-?"

"They did until I graduated and was free of their care. I asked if I could go to college though my dad said that he would only be paying for a year and then I would be on my own. Well that year came and went and I have been having trouble finding a job and going to college. I even asked my two older brothers for help although my parents told them not to give me any kind of money because I was in the red which I am not," she cut him off again.

"Arianne, just how old are you?" Leo very tenderly asked her, he did not want to start an argument with her since her parents have been doing this for some time.

"I just turned 21 this past Monday of March," she answered him softly whipping away her tears that were slowly drying.

Leo was quiet for a while. He may be heading into his early twenties but he knew that they were supposed to be of good times not that of sorrows and hurt.

"How old are you?" she asked him.

"I will be 20 this April. The 1st," he answered her and very gently handed her the piece of paper.

"Are you leaving?" she asked as she looked at the paper in her hands.

"No, not yet. You are still not thinking of killing yourself, are you?"

"Slowly it's fading. It's just… why can't they send me off to college. What is so scary for me to go to college? I don't want to be a worker bee all of my life and be labeled the black sheep of my family which they are trying to do,"

"My friend works at an antique shop, I can put in a good word that you need the money and need to go to the community college. In addition, Arianne, it will get your parents off of your back for a while, but it will show them that you can go to college and graduate from it. I promise," Leo suggested to her.

Turning around, Arianne looked into the shadows, which Leo had retreated to the tree after he had handed her the piece of paper.

"You would do that?" she asked him miffed.

"Yes and I don't break my promises Arianne. April Jones, who runs the shop, does need some help around the place. Besides her husband knocking things over and getting her upset. It takes very careful hands and know how to treat costumers how you wanted to be treated. I can easily set the interview by tomorrow morning if that's early enough for you?" he said back to her.

She looked at the shadows and then looked down at the rooftop.

"How early?" she softly mumbled to him.

"Hang on," he told her and then called April after he pulled out his shell cell.

"Hello April? I am sorry for calling at such a late hour but I was wondering about that job opening for your shop? It _is_ still open _right_?" he asked into his shell cell.

Arianne shifted from one foot to the next after her shock had quickly disappeared. She listened to Leo talk softly into his cell phone and waited patiently but also was kept on alert for her parents.

"Arianne? How does 10:15 in the morning sound?" Leo gently pulled her attention back to him.

"Huh? Uhm… that's fine, just-"

"How about this, she will meet you in Central Park around 8:45 in the morning so that the both of you can get to know one another better and it will give the both of you a better understanding of what the interview is going to be about," Leo interrupted Arianne as he smiled.

"Okay but is it alright with uhm...Mrs. Jones?" Arianne asked him not wanting to be a burden then she already was.

"Yes and I will be there too, just keep your eyes open okay?" he reassured her.

Arianne suddenly asked him "You will? Why?"

"So that your parents won't hound you like they did tonight. Oh, sorry April, I will see you tomorrow morning, night," Leo told Arianne but hung up with April to let her sleep.

"The real reason, Leonardo," Arianne pressed him.

"Not only about your parents but also I want to get to know you more, however I can't uhm…"

"You sleep during the day and is a owl at night," she finished for him.

"Yes, but I am not an owl," he softly chuckled to himself.

"Thank you, for stopping by, Leonardo," she told him.

"I am thankful that I did stop by and please, call me Leo. Even though I want to stay here all night, I have to get back to my brothers and then head home. Call me within about an hour from now," he informed her after he knew she wasn't going to kill herself.

"May I give you a hug?" Arianne softly asked him.

Leo's heart was once again up in his throat and the desire to hug her was so hot that he wanted it to happen but what would she think of him if she saw him? Let alone guess what he was if she touched him for a hug? He couldn't touch her.

"I am sorry, Arianne. Even though I would really like to, I can't," He replied heavily back.

Nodding sadly, Arianne sat back down on the swing and looked at her feet.

"Silent as a ninja, but pure of heart as that of a knight," she mumbled low though he had heard her.

"If it helps, I will come back every night," he suggested to her, not wanting to lose this slowly growing friendship with her.

"I would really like that, may be you can read the rest of the poem that I have in mind tomorrow night?" she replied to him looking up into the tree.

"You write poems? Interesting," he commented to her.

"I will tell you more if you tell me more of you," she countered him.

"Sounds wonderful but, please go to bed, you have an interview tomorrow and I don't want you to be tired from our conversation tonight," he told her smiling.

"Yes Leonardo," she replied back, softly smiling too.

Leo gazed at her for a bit before he saw her get up from the swing and head back into her bedroom through a window. Very quickly, he climbed up near where the ropes of the swing were and then untied them. He moved the swing further into the shadows next to a cubby whole area and that it was safe and far away from where her father had looked.

Writing a quick note, he left it hanging on the lower smaller branches, then very soon jumped down into the park, and ran to the closet manhole cover.

* * *

 

The next morning, Arianne was walking around the pathways of Central Park. She did not know what this April woman would look like so she kept her eyes open. Thankfully, Leo's plan worked for her parents. Her father had asked her where she was going for this early in the morning. When she replied that she found a buser job, he was very pleased and told her not to come back home until she was hired. Well that was half an hour ago.

' _Leo said he would be out here, but where? Central Park is huge for one person.'_ She thought to herself until a piece of paper tumbled into her face.

Catching it at once, Arianne read the note. It had Leo's unique handwriting.

" _Good morning, Ari. Stay in this area, April should be here soon. She is a red head so keep your eyes open. I hope everything goes well._

_Leo"_

At this small little note, Arienne smiled. Looking up into the trees, she did not find Leo but she could feel his presence was in this area of the park.

"Excuse me but are you Arienne Lyn?" she heard from behind her. When she turned back around, she saw a woman with red hair and emerald green eyes.

"Yes, I am and you must be April?" she replied a little hesitant on meeting April.

"Leo said that you needed some help and that you were beautiful," April stated, looking at Arienne from head to toe.

Arienne was wearing her best gray slacks, a soft white blouse with some indigo colors in it with the matching jacket to the slacks. Her long dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail as that made her look like a businessperson with her small black purse hanging off of her right shoulder.

"You are beautiful," April commented as Arienne blushed.

"Thank you," she replied back, glancing over her shoulder into the trees.

"Care to tell me a little a bit about yourself?" April asked her next while Arienne knew that Leo was no longer here.

"I just graduated about a year or so ago, I had about 3.9 score which is good for any kind of University which I am hoping to get into. I have two older brothers who are already out of the house and never talk to me. Kyle Lyn is my oldest brother and he has a family in the upper New York, he is never in this part of town unless it is the holidays. Marcus Lyn is my second older brother and he lives in the same gated community as my parent's do, which is just over there," Arienne started and pointed over to her house.

April's eyes widen at the house that Arienne was pointing to, as she nodded.

"I uhm…"

"Leo already told me fully, this morning, on what has happened so far and I want to help, Arienne. In any way I can, I want to help you. Leo was so upset about what happened last night that I told him to go mediated outside. Somehow or another, you really got to his heart and that is somewhat rare," April softly interrupted her.

Arienne remained silent and wondered what else Leo had said about her.

' _I got to his heart? How? He saw and heard what had happened last night. I am not that special, am I?'_ she thought to herself while April was walking over to a bench.

"What do you like to do in your spare time?" April asked her next.

"Uhm…what spare time?" Arienne asked her in return.

April looked a bit alarmed at this and then said "Do you read? Go running or something? Take pictures? You know, do something that is fun for you?"

"I don't. I am either trying to convince my parents that I am looking for work or cleaning the house when they are at work," she told her truthfully.

"Arienne, how about, for today, I give you that? Just so, you know what it is like to have fun? Because everyone needs to have some sort of activity that is fun to do," April said on the spot, getting irritated with Arienne's parents.

"Like what?" she replied, wondering what will happen now.

"Come on, I have a few things in mind that makes me happy," April told her and got up from the bench.

Arienne glanced back over at the trees and stayed put. She wanted to see Leo again. She wanted to talk to him again, like she did last night. A piece of paper floated down to where she sat and she gently took it.

" _What is wrong? Are you frightened to go with April? If so, she's a wonderful person and friend, Ari."_ It said.

"I am not frightened, I just want to talk to you," she barely whispered aloud as her eyes looked up at the tree again.

Another piece of paper floated down to her as she then felt his presence stronger now. He was much closer to her.

" _Isn't that what we're doing right now?"_ he had written to her.

"No, I want to speak with you like last night," she whispered again.

"What is it that you would like to speak about?" he whispered in her left ear.

"Leo may I speak with you privately?" April then whispered to him.

Arienne got up and left them be. She walked over to a Starbucks stand and bought some drinks for everyone with the little money that she had.

"Arienne," April said to her as she gratefully took her drink.

"Yes?" she replied to her.

"You're looking for a full time job, right? Well I did some calculations on how many hours you would need at my shop and I can't pay you that much however, I know a good friend of mine who works within a museum and she's looking for someone," April explained to her.

Arienne looked down and mumbled "Oh,"

"Please understand, that I wish I could hire you, but financially I can't," April tried to reassure her.

"What kind of museum?" Arienne asked next, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"It's the Metropolitan Museum of Art actually, but what you would be doing is data collecting and making sure everything is where it should be and not in the public eye. Sometimes you would but that would only be if they are over flowing and such which only happens when students come by," April explained to her.

"May I speak with Leo, please?" she asked her hoping that she could speak with him.

"Yeah," April told her and walked away as Arienne walked over to the tree.

Even though she was silent and did not alert Leo that she was there, she saw now in the daylight, his back and weapons.

"Leo?" she asked him as he turned to her but then jumped into the tree branches again.

"Ari? You startled me," he whispered down to her.

"I uhm…bought you a coffee. Ooh wait, I bought you some green tea by mistake, I am so-"

"I actually prefer tea over coffee and green tea is alright with me," he softly interrupted her.

"How can I give this to you if you're up in a tree?" she whispered to him.

"Set it on the ground and I will get it," he replied to her.

She did what he said for her to do and waited.

"Leo, should I apply to this museum?" she asked him nervously, glancing at April and then at the empty cup holder.

"I don't think now would be a good time to be picky. However, if you are nervous of going to this place, I know that my brother, Donny, can look around within it for today. I know it will do him good to get out and about," he said back to her while she nodded.

"Why do you carry weapons? And was that really your back?" she asked him sipping her hot cocoa coffee mix.

Heavily sighing, Leo cursed himself silently and wondered how he was going to explain this to her? Would she freak out, as so many other women have when they see him or his brothers when they help them out of tough times?

"Arienne you have to do me this promise and what I am asking is something that will make you disappointed but, it's for your own protection," he told her as he lightly drank from his cup of tea.

"I won't tell anyone, Leo. I promise," she said to him though she really wanted some answers about who he is.

"Thank you, Ari. Now what is it that makes you a bit uneasy of taking this job?" he softly asked her.

"How do I tell my parents? What will-?"

"Ari, this isn't about them. This is your life; it is not about their life. Eventually, they must know that you will go to college, whether they like it or not. Do not give up on your dream, Arienne. Do not give up on you," he interrupted her sternly.

"How can I be confident as you, Leo?" she barely uttered the words to him.

"Find the inner strength that you have inside. You can be a fierce young woman when you focus on it, like when you argue with your parents. I have seen it, Ari," He encouraged her.

"Alright, but if this goes wrong, I am blaming you for it," she teased him a bit.

He chuckled softly and replied "Do not worry, it won't go wrong. Just enjoy today. I have to get going now, thank you for the tea and coming here,"

"Will I talk to you again, later on tonight?" she asked him quickly, her hopes were hanging by a thread for his answer.

"Yes, around 9:45 PM. It will be the darkest at that time," he replied to her smiling.

"Thank you Leo, for everything," she whispered in return.

"You're welcome, Ari," he whispered back before he jumped away from his spot and headed home.

Arienne went with April to go see her friend about that job.

* * *

 

Pacing around on the rooftop, Arienne wondered where her swing had gone. Her thoughts knew who had taken it down. Her father. He said to her one day some years back, that she needed to grow up and stop being a child when it comes to such things. Arienne never did throw away her swing but today, her heart had sunk when she saw the tree was bare of it.

"Ari? Why are you out there?" she heard Leo's voice from the branches of the trees.

"Well my swing was-"

"I put it over here so your father wouldn't cut it down and it's easier for me to talk to you," he interrupted her as she walked further into the thick branches of the tree.

There, just nicely tucked away and out of sight was her swing. Smiling at this she walked over to it and sat down. Leo smiled too and sat down on the branch closer to the tree.

"How did today go?" he asked her curiously.

"I got the job. The area that I will be maintaining is the Japanese art display, data and a little bit of giving tours but, that is it," she answered him smiling.

Nodding he then replied "I kind of figured you would since I looked up the opening myself on my brother's computer,"

"How many brothers do you have?"

"Three younger brothers, I am the oldest and even though at times it is hard on some days with them, I wouldn't trade it for the world,"

"What are their names? And are they like yours?"

"Our names are from the great four renaissance masters. You know I am Leonardo, but I was named after him. Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo,"

"So how are they different from one another and you?"

"Well, Raph likes to work out a lot or hang out with April's husband, Casey. Donny likes to tinker on anything that is technology or help us within this world. In addition, Mikey is the kid of the family. He loves his comic books and video games way too much at times but, I hope he never changes, you know?"

"And what about you? You are the oldest but…?"

"I am the leader of my brothers. Our father had it like that since he found us when we were infants. I am always looking out for them and training a lot for their sake,"

"Hmm…April said that you meditate? What for?"

"My family and I believe in Bushido, Ninjutsu and being a true ninja warrior. I am the only one who takes it seriously or true to heart because of our enemies that we make throughout our adventures,"

"So you're a ninja but study Bushido and Ninjutsu? Don't they counter act against one another somehow?" she asked him.

Leo had to come up with something because she was right. However, what was the best answer to give her?

"Bushido was kind of like the Samurai way of Chivalry and stressed importance on Honor to death. It possessed seven virtues (Rectitude, Courage, Benevolence, Respect, Honest, and Honor & Loyalty). Being a ninja was to fight un-honorably. You were to be an assassin. Therefore, the codes of Ninjutsu were espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination. All of which aren't very honest, respectful, or honorable," he honestly told her.

Very gently from his branch, he leaned down and started to push the ropes forward and backwards so that Arienne would swing just a little bit. She did not mind this, but she still wanted her questions answered about him.

"So, which one do you and your family go by?" she asked him, leaning against the left rope thinking.

"My family and I lean towards Bushido however we behave like ninjas, the stealth, espionage or spying, and being silent when we go patrolling but we do not take in the assassin part of it. Plus from both Bushido and Ninjutsu we train of the martial arts. So we take little pieces of those three and use them against our enemies," he answered her.

"Oh," was all she said back to him, letting the soft motion of the swing be the only action for tonight.

"Arienne," Leo began. "Before you uhm…met me, what would you do when the situations with your parents got out of hand? How would you deal with it?"

"I would come up here and just swing on my swing. I would cry and be angry and let my emotions run their courses but, I would talk to no one about this," she answered him, very slowly looking up into the heart of the tree.

"Why don't your older brothers help you? I mean, I am the oldest and I try to help my younger siblings as much as possible but, something here within your family doesn't add up right," he asked her, curious to know more of her family.

"We were close, when we were younger however, that slowly changed when we got older. Kyle doesn't talk to me because he has his own family to look after, though I do miss him. Marcus well…he's a bit of a snob right now or from what I have heard whenever he visits. They all ignore me whenever I try and speak with him or Kyle. That house over there, to your right if you were looking at it from across the street is his house. He never is home during the night, always out partying and such or is with Kyle because Marcus is going after the same degree that Kyle has," she explained to Leo.

Jumping down and holding the rope of the swing still, Leo was wanting to hold her because this wasn't right. This wasn't a family. Arienne shouldn't have been born to and to learn of this.

Wavering into his nose, Leo inhaled the very unique perfume that she uses. It calmed his heart down and made him think clearly. He wanted to know what it was that she used so he could buy it for her in the future.

"I really wish I could hold you, Arienne but, I can't. I am sorry," he whispered in her right ear.

"Why can't you show me what you look like? Are you afraid that I won't accept what you look like?" she asked him softly.

"I have faced many people and most of them are women. My brothers and I are the same in looks but, we are different from one another," he answered her the best way that he could.

Not saying anything in return, Arienne knew that if she poked around too much, Leo would leave because of it. So for now, she dropped it.

"You said that you had a poem for me to read? Is it finished and may I read it now?" Leo asked her, changing the subject.

"I haven't been able to write anything about it but, I do have older poems and stories that I keep," she replied, wanting to look behind her shoulder at him.

"I will wait here until you come back," he whispered low to her before he jumped back into the branches of the tree again.

Arienne quickly got off of the swing and hurriedly walked to her bedroom window skylight before she disappeared. Leo breathed deeply and couldn't help but think what kind of perfume she used.

"Leo?" her soft voice echoed near the swing.

"I am still here, Ari," he whispered back.

"You still want to read my poems and stories?" she asked him, sitting back on the swing again with a box in her hands.

"Is that all from you?" he asked her in awe as he jumped down to the roof but stayed in the darkest parts of the shadows.

"Yeah, I guess I forgot to tell April that I do have a hobby or hobbies. One of the books is a photo album of the pictures that I take and also the drawings that I draw," she explained to him as she then very gently put the box on the ground that was close to him.

Kneeling down, Leo looked through her box and found the smell of her perfume strongest here.

"No offence or anything but what is the perfume that you use?" he asked her boldly.

"You don't like it?" she asked back.

"I do like it but, I am miffed on what it is," he expressed to her.

"Oh, well uhm. It's not really a perfume; it's my shampoo and conditioner with the lotion that I use daily. I use black raspberry vanilla for my hair and Peony lotion for my body, which I need some more of both soon," she said to him shrugging her shoulders.

"What kind of shampoo and conditioner? What brand, I guess I should ask you," he asked her, still looking through her box.

"Oh, uhm…I usually buy it at the local shop of Heavenly Body and Co.? they usually have both there and if not, they should have it in the back room area. That place is so wonderful to go, if you're female that is," she told him smiling at the end.

He softly chuckled and replied "Well I am not female however, I think April can go with you since she's been looking for good uhm…hair and body products for her husband, Casey to drool over,"

"How long have they been married Leo?" she asked him.

"For about a year and half which is frightening in and of itself because these two had a very strong dislike for one another. Now though, it's a bit weird," Leo began to tell the story of how April met his brothers and family and then how they met Casey and so on.

That night, Leo and Arienne talked nonstop. They discussed about a lot of topics, mostly what they both have in common and hobbies but Leo and Arienne both gave very little about their families or the situations that they both have been.

Night after night, Leo would go and visit Arienne. They would either talk nonstop for one night or just listen to the humming city. It was their outlet for one another and it gave them both peace within their minds and souls. For now, he and Arienne were taking their sudden friendship slowly.

Whenever Arienne's parents would argue with her about something, she would call Leo if he could come by. Most of the times he could but other times, and he would really hate himself for saying this, he couldn't.

Leo kept Arienne a secret from his family and mostly to his enemies. That was something that he couldn't bare to think about. That if his enemies knew of her, then she would get captured and tortured for information about him or his family and he wasn't going to let that happen.

April made a promise to Leo to keep Arienne a secret from the others of their tightly knit family. April didn't know why but she completely forgot who Arienne was after of a month though, she never forgot the promise that she made to Leo.

As the stars that were hidden by the city lights and the cars zooming throughout the city streets, Leo silently within his heart of his soul, was glad that he made the choice to stop at Arienne's house and to help her out.

Fin.

 


	2. Celebrating with Caution.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Leo's Birthday and Arienne wants to do something for him that will cheer him up. However, with the City gangs at war with one another, things get complicated and going out your front door is to take with great caution.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This takes place when the Shredder is completely gone within the 03 TV Series, when "The City at War" episodes came out. Something about how Leo reacts to them sparked an idea for me.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and I do not make any money of this story.

Celebrating With Caution:

Arienne kept her eyes on the clock at her job that she had for a few months now but it only made her stay within the four walls that much longer and torturous. Heavily sighing, and groaning in irritation, she wanted to go home. It was April 1, April fool's day but also it was a friend's birthday too. Her secret friend, Leonardo.

Smiling at this, she remembered how she first met him and how he saved her life from going downhill with her ignorant parents. That is how she got her job was because of him. True she did argue with her parents when they realized that she wasn't a buser at some fast food restaurant. That night Leo didn't come to her even though she had left one message on his cell phone. For five nights in a row, she didn't see him or heard from him.

When he did finally show up to see her, he told her what has been going on with his family and also in a round a bout way, what he has been up to. Arienne quickly learned that Leo was protecting her of what he actually does and that he never told anyone else, besides his best human friend April, of Arienne. She didn't know why though she understood his concern for her.

Glancing back at the clock that hung on the wall, Arienne looked back down. Just half an hour to go and then she could race home to go out and buy something for Leo.

' _But what can I get him?'_ she thought to herself as she pondered this.

"Have his family ever taken him out for dinner?" she asked aloud.

"Who's family? And who's him?" another voice entered the picture as Arienne heavily sighed and then glared at her co-worker.

"None of your business Morgan," Arienne growled at her.

"I just want to know-"

"Which is none your damn business, Morgan," Arienne cut her off glaring irritably at her.

"Arienne, what are you still doing here? Didn't you get my message that you could leave around 1 this afternoon?" her boss's voice came into the room when she was just walking by the door.

"I didn't get it, sorry, I'll check out now," she replied back standing up.

"Hmm…Morgan, may I speak with you personally in my office? It has to do with your job," their boss told Morgan who beamed brightly.

Arienne rolled her eyes, grabbed her purse and clocked out. She walked from the museum to her new house that was fairly close to Central Park.

One thing that she loved about having her own house was that her parents wouldn't be there when she returned home. Moving out was a big deal for her, because she never did anything like it. Also, to ease her into her new home was Leo who came inside to help her unpack and talk to her like they usually do up on the rooftop.

Pulling out her cell phone, she pressed one button/number and held it to her left ear as it rang.

"Hello," Leo's voice greeted her.

"Leo who is that? Come on buddy, no time for-"

"Raph, this is important, excuse me," Leo interrupted his brother but Arienne remained silent.

"Arienne, what in the Heck are you doing-"

"You don't have any plans for tonight, do you?" She cut him off.

Heavily sighing Leo replied "No, I don't why?"

"Because I am taking you out to dinner for your birthday," she told him smiling as she walked down the streets.

"Ari, I can't. The City-"

"Is at War with the gangs and thugs. I know, you told me this a million times. Just please, just this once? And if it back fires, I will do something completely different next year, just please?" she interrupted him using her begging voice on him.

Leo groaned and whispered "When and I'll be at your house,"

"Around 10-ish-"

"No, earlier than that," he interrupted her.

"But, Leo?" she protested.

"No, Ari. Around 8:30 is the earliest that I would like for you to be out and about," he stressed to her.

"Alright, how about 6? Will that keep you happy?" she asked him.

"Yes, yes it will keep me happy. Now, I have to get back inside my home, but I want you to get home and stay there after you make the reservations to wherever you're taking me for dinner," he said to her smiling a bit.

"No offence, Leo but when will this end? This city war? I had some guys looking around my home last night and I was completely frightened. I didn't know if I should have called you or the cops," she told him.

"You should have called me on that, Ari. I will stay the night with you for tonight, however my brothers will know something is up," he replied to her in a strict tone.

"I will keep that in mind from now on. Just don't tell them," she said back, quickly crossing the street and then continued to walk home.

"Ari, I am glad that you called me today. I honestly thought that you forgot about my birthday," he whispered low to her.

"How can I forget? I was waiting for nearly an hour and half to get off of my work shift. Now that I am, I want to celebrate this day with you; however, I have a funny feeling that your family will be wanting you back soon. I'm almost home,"

"How many blocks away are you?"

"Just two or one and half,"

"Alright, how was your day?"

"I hope I don't have to see Morgan again tomorrow. Ooh! I just hate her, Leo. I really do,"

"What did she do this time?"

"Forgot to tell me that I was suppose to get off at 1 and it's 2:38,"

"What did your boss…uhm...What's her name again? Janet?" Leo asked her quickly as she entered her gated community where her home was.

"No, Jennifer, and she called Morgan into her office what happened after that I don't know," She corrected him as she dug through her purse but gasped when she saw a shadow and then two street guys wearing purple dragon tattoos on their faces or arms.

"Ari? What's going-?"

SMASH!

Her cell phone was in tiny bits as she dodged the blow of the steel pipe that was supposedly for her head.

"What do you want!" she asked them frightened and terrified now.

"Oh to send you a one way ticket, on death row," one of them told her evilly.

Backing up and trying to find a way out of this, Arienne didn't know what to do. The sun was still out and people weren't home just yet.

'Leo where are you?' she asked inside of her head.

Suddenly, all of them stood still when police sirens went off. Arienne knew that Leo had called the police to help her. The two purple dragon guys started to run away but, something flew through the air and then wrapped around their ankles, making them fall hard to the ground.

"Ari," she barely heard from her rooftop as she glanced up.

There, hidden within the tree's shadows, was Leo.

"Leo," she whispered in relief.

"Make sure they stay put until the police come and collect them," he hinted to her as she glanced at the suddenly forgotten pipe that was dropped by one of the two thugs.

She didn't pick it up as she then swung her leg backwards a bit and then forward in between the guy's legs.

"OW!" he groaned and laid down, curling up on his right side.

She repeated the move again on the other guy who groaned in pain too. Not soon after two police cars drove inside with their lights going and parked just a few feet from where Arienne stood.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened and the police documented her story and arrested the two purple dragon guys and hauled them off to the police station.

Arienne spent only fifteen minutes with the police before she headed inside her home after she picked up her purse. There was nothing she could do about her cell phone except throw it in the garbage can.

"Ari," she heard Leo's voice from her living room after she took off her coat.

She was shaking horribly.

"L-Leo?" she stuttered to him.

"I'm here, may be some tea will help?" he told her as she then saw him in the shadows of her home.

The shadows may not be dark as the night's shadows but she could easily see him better. She was about to walk towards him when she heard her doorbell ringing about five times very fast.

"Hide," she whispered low to him, fearing that he would be seen by whoever it was at the door.

Slowly she turned around and walked towards her front door and there standing was Kyle and Marcus with wide frightened and worried eyes. They stood at least 6'5 tall, dwarfing her own short height that she got from their mother.

"Ari! You're all right? We heard something had gone here and when we learned that it was you, we rushed over here at once," Kyle exclaimed worriedly to her.

"I am shaken but I am fine. Just, what are you doing talking to me?" she asked them, curious on what they would do to her.

"Arienne, please let us tell you the whole story if we can come inside your home?" Marcus calmly requested to her, hoping that she would let him and Kyle inside of her home.

Thinking this over, she nodded slowly and let them in. Kyle looked around her home and smiled.

"It's very warm in here, I like it," he commented to her and it was really welcoming and had recent warmth to it.

Warm creamy colors licked the walls of her entryway that flowed into her living room, which was the most welcoming area within her home for right now. She was still painting and working on some things within the other bedrooms and such.

"What do you want?" she asked them out of defense.

"We're not like mom and dad, Ari-"

"Don't say my nickname unless you have earned the trust that you two broke long ago," she cut off Marcus and glared at them.

Heavily sighing Marcus nodded to her.

"Alright, Arienne. Mom and dad wanted you to not-"

"Talk to you two yeah I got that after I got into a huge argument with them when I was 14 years old. Dad nearly back handed me but thought against it when mom got in the way," Arienne cut Marcus off again.

He looked at Kyle and then felt really bad for not talking to their only and little sister.

"We're sorry, Arienne that we weren't there for you, but dad told us not to talk to you. He said that we would get charges against us, when we moved out on our own. Kyle has been keeping recordings of what has been going on between them and you, just for your safety," Marcus expressed heavily to her.

"Why didn't you go against them then? Why did you listen to them when I had no one, not even mom, to back me up and help me out?" she argued with him, tears swelling up in her eyes.

"Because, Arienne," Kyle spoke up seeing how badly hurt his little sister was.

"Because why Kyle? Was it the money that you will get whenever they die? Truth be told, most of it is going to businesses all over this state and very little is going to any of us. Dear old dad thought that we don't need it when he passes away, I read it when I came across the original will by sheer accident," she snapped at him, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him and Marcus.

Kyle slowly glanced over at Marcus who was surprised by this.

"Can't mom do anything about it?" Marcus slowly asked her.

"No. She tried to do that, but dad nearly came undone and I took the brunt of it when I stepped in to help her. I may have been in the hospital for a week but oh well," she answered him still glaring and seething silently.

"Arienne, there has to be something-?"

"Are you two that fucking greedy? If it is, get the hell out of my house," she cut him off, pointing to the front door.

"I am not greedy, and I won't leave until you hear me out!" Marcus yelled at her.

She remained silent but glared evilly at him.

"Dad is on those pills for his chemical imbalance. Mom made him go to the doctor when he completely lost it on you that one time when Kyle and I weren't home that one summer. She has been trying to get him to take his medication but, he refuses to do so," Marcus explained to her.

"I…I did not know that," she stammered to him surprised by this.

Kyle nodded and then lifted his shirt from his back and showed her a scar that was hard to see and hard to find on his lower back area.

"Dad did that to me long ago and I never really quite understood why he did what he did until mom took him to see a doctor about it. When that happened, we tried our hardest to protect you and mom because it wasn't right for dad to hit you or mom in the manner that he has done," Kyle explained to her, dropping his shirt and turning back around to face her.

Arienne swallowed and looked at the floor in shame.

"Does he know…that what I say to him to get him off of my back is-?"

"Yes, Arienne. He does and even though he tries his hardest to not be so harsh and cruel with you, he can't help it," Kyle interrupted her as she nodded.

"Okay," she barely whispered to them and shifted her feet about but her adrenaline was still course through her.

"How about, sometime next week, us three get together for lunch? We can pick you up, wherever you work now, and take you out?" Marcus suggested to her.

"I would like that," she replied to him as he nodded to her.

"I can't take it anymore, Ari come here!" Kyle announced to them and the scooped his baby little sister into his arms hugging her to him.

It was there that Arienne crumbled and cried silently into her older brother's embrace. Kyle held her tightly to him and looked around for the staircase.

He gently picked her up in his arms as she had softly fallen asleep after today's events and walked up her staircase. Marcus stayed put downstairs while a pair of eyes watched him closely.

When Kyle came back down, he looked at his older brother before they both walked to her front door and walked out of her home. Somewhere within her home, Leo crept silently out of his hiding spot and walked to the front door before he turned the dead bolt so her house was secured.

Walking silently up the stairs, he followed them upward until he was in a hallway with three bedrooms and a bathroom to his right. He glanced in the first bedroom which was completely empty and had lots of dried paint strikes on the wall. He glanced at the bathroom but only briefly before he walked further down the hallway and saw that the other two bedrooms were exactly like the first one, nothing within them but paintbrushes and different markings on the walls.

In the middle of the hallway, he saw a closet door. Trying the old turtle luck, he reached out and twisted the handle to his right. It opened but instead of being shelves, there was a hidden staircase that went to the open loft above. He walked up the steps one at a time but what greeted him made him look around in awe.

It wasn't cluttered with boxes or anything like that. It was actually a fairly large master bedroom. A dresser was up against the left side of the room with a mirror stand attach to it as his eyes then saw the big king size bed with Arienne sleeping peacefully away on it.

Leo looked around the room more and saw some paintings hanging up on the walls that she had collected over the years. The style of this room made Leo feel as if he belonged here and no one else but him and Ari.

Walking over to her neatly made king size bed, Leo very gently took the blanket from the end of her bed and very carefully put over her sleeping form. As he tucked her in, he leaned down to see her more closely. From this angle, he could see how beautiful she was. Her right hand curled a bit and it looked as if she was a little girl. Her hair glowed in the faint sunlight that was now slowly fading away.

"Sleep well Ari, I will return for tonight," he whispered low to her.

She didn't stir or anything, just kept on sleeping which was the best medicine for her right now.

Leo wrote a simple small note to her and put it in her softly curled hand before his shell cell went off. Not bothering to talk to the person, which he knew was one of his brothers, he switched it off.

Gently leaning until his lips softly brushed against her skin on her forehead, he kissed her goodbye for now and then walked back the way he came.

Arienne slowly woke up a couple of hours later but when she felt something within her right hand, she opened her eyes and saw the note. Slowly sitting up, she blinked until her eyes focused and then read the note.

" _Ari,_

_I am sorry for not being here when you woke up, however I had to get back to my brothers. I will meet up with you near the swing. Please don't be late._

_Leo"_

She glanced over at her clock and saw that it was around five-ish. She had enough time to take a much-needed shower and get ready.

Getting up, she walked over to her dresser and picked out her clothes for tonight. After she took her shower and put on some very light make-up and got dressed, she walked over to her dresser bottom draw and pulled it open. As she got what she has had for some time now, she knew that Leo would like his present.

She walked down the stairs and then walked to her left into the third bedroom that was next to the bathroom. She opened the window and climbed through it as she then walked up her roof towards the swing where no one could actually see it unless it was in the dead of winter.

Seeing that Leo wasn't here just yet, she walked over to her swing and sat down on it. Softly swinging back and forth to pass the time, she looked over the rooftops of her small-gated community and that of the city. The cars were a dull hum and every now and then, a siren would go off somewhere.

She didn't glance at her watch that was her cell phone in her purse. She didn't know how much time had passed when she sensed something was off. She must have drifted off because she was wide-awake and alert now.

"Arienne?" came a rough voice that belonged to the person that she was waiting for.

"Leo? Is that you?" she asked him, she wasn't going to be taking any chances.

"Yes, but may I use your bathroom to wash up? I kind of got into the City War tonight," he replied to her, slowly moving from his hidden spot near the trees.

"Sure," she told him and got off of her swing before she walked closer to him.

"Please, don't come any closer," he warned her.

"How do I know that it's the real Leonardo and not some trap?" she asked him.

"You wrote me that poem, uhm…In Reverie was the title," he began and thought.

" _Tonight is such a lonely night,_

_The mist is closing in,_

_The mist of memory and of you,_

_And of what might have been,_

_Tonight the world seems like a big imaginary sea,_

_I'm running, dear, with arms outstretched,_

_But you don't come to me,_

_Tonight is moon glow night for me,_

_It's set aside for dreams so great,_

_But something way down deep inside,_

_Cries out, too late, too late,_

_And though tonight above all of the rest,_

_We two could be as one,_

_I know this will be but a dream,_

_When tonight is done."_

Leo told her as she looked at him and nodded.

"It really is you," she commented to him.

"Yes, it is me, Ari," he calmly replied back to her, softly smiling.

She watched him limp towards one of her bedroom windows and went inside after he got the window to open. She slowly followed him into her house as he walked into her bathroom that was completely dark. After he had closed the door, he turned on the light and looked around it. It was the average size for a second bathroom.

Arienne let him get washed up as she grabbed some towels from one of her bedroom closets.

"Leo? May I come in? I have some towels and soap for you," she announced to him.

"Just one second, Ari," he told her as he had gotten the water going and then got inside the bathtub.

"Okay, you can come in now," he then said to her as he drug the solid light gray shower current over his body frame.

Arienne opened the door and walked inside, she didn't see his knee and elbow pads, his mask or his weapons leaning up against the trash can, as she then set the towels on the toilet lid and then put the soap on the wall of the bathtub.

"If you need anything else, just yell and I'll get it okay?" she said to him as she then walked back out to give him some privacy.

"Thank you Ari," he exclaimed to her as he grabbed for the soap and started to get clean again.

As Arienne waited for Leo, she thought on something that would make him a bit more happy. Why not cook at home instead of going out in that War the city has been having some time now?

"Hmm…let's see. What can I cook him for dinner? Besides tea of course," she thought out loud.

She looked around in her large pantry and didn't come up with any idea on what to cook for him.

"Tea would be great," she heard his voice, it may have sounded calm but she could feel the tension.

"How was your shower?" she asked him getting the tea ready.

"It was wonderful, thank you for letting me wash up," he replied, staying in the shadows of her living room.

"You're welcome, Birthday boy," she teased him lightly, hoping that would help him open up about tonight.

He chuckled and said "just don't ask me how old I am because my brothers already gave me a hard time about it earlier today,"

"Speaking of, today. What happened to make you so late? And why are you so tense?" she asked him bravely.

Hearing a heavy tense sigh, Leo then said "I had a talk with my father on whether or not this War within the city was made by my family or not. My hotheaded brother said that it wasn't and that we should just stay out of it however, I don't see and feel that, Ari. Not after today I don't,"

She looked at the dark doorway to the living room and then looked back at the stove where she put the now full teapot on.

"Care to express your pent up emotions here? I won't argue back, just let you get it out and off of your chest for now?" she suggested to him.

"You wouldn't mind that?" he asked her a bit surprised.

"Well, you know that my parents argue with me a lot and that has taught me many things of what to do and what not to do. I hate it when I am around tense people; it makes me uncomfortable and ruins my day because of their negative energy and such. Plus I read somewhere if you get your frustration and anger out, it can help you," she explained to him, sitting at the breakfast bar so she could sit down and talk with him.

"I'm right behind you and I have heard of that method of dealing with anger and frustration. I didn't know that you don't like people that are like that though I can see why," he told her softly.

"Was your family, your brothers and father worried when you left here?" she asked him, changing the subject a bit.

"They asked me where I was and why I didn't come back," he carefully answered her.

"Did you tell them that you were with me?" she asked him next.

Heavy silence filled her ears as she really wanted to look at him or at least at his shadow.

"They don't know anything about you, Arienne," he truthfully expressed to her.

"They don't? May I ask why? And why don't they know about me?" she questioned him further on it.

Hanging his head a bit, Leo got up from his spot on her couch and walked to the doorway of kitchen, which was across from where she was sitting.

"I can't risk letting anyone know of who you are. If the enemy knows of you and if they capture you wanting information about who I am or what my family is doing, they can easily use you against me and I can't do that. You don't know what kind of world that I live in and the risk of it being high as it is now. I can't live with myself if you got hurt or even killed by one of my enemies, Ari," he explained passionately to her.

The teapot slowly started to whistle as Arienne slowly got up with Leo's words echoing loudly within her mind. His eyes watched her, letting it all sink in for while.

She took the teapot off of the stove and then got two cups since she needed some tea herself. Leo watched her fix both of their cups until he moved back towards the couch in the living room area.

Arienne got a food tray out from one of her kitchen draws and gently put both of the cups on it. Slowly to not spill the tea all over the food tray, she walked into the living room area when she saw Leo's shadow figure and white glowing eyes.

"I did not upset you about my answer did I?" he asked her as he gently took one of the cups and sipped from it as she walked over to the breakfast bar and sat down, turning around to face him.

"No, it just…it makes sense that you don't want anyone to know of who I am. Those two tattoo street gangers-"

"Purple Dragons is what they are called or call themselves," he corrected her.

"Never heard of them and I don't want to get to know them. They were frightening yes, however I knew that you would save me somehow from them. I don't know how to defend myself except kicking and elbowing someone"

"But that would be enough to get out of their reach and run for the police station or somewhere safe, Ari," he stated to her.

"In way, yes but they would still be after me," she mumbled while she drank some her cup of tea.

"hmm. Well I could take care of that if and where I knew you were in trouble," he teased her lightly as he drank from his cup of tea.

Biting her lower lip, Arienne wanted to ask him this but didn't what his answer would be.

"Worried about them?" he asked her as she shook her head 'no'.

"Why can't I see you? I mean, yes I have seen your shadow or the outline of your body and a little bit of your back and weapons. I just don't like it," she asked him, looking at the floor since she couldn't get her confidence level high enough to look him in the eye.

"Arienne, I have already answered this question and you do know why," he very carefully worded it to her, not to hurt her feelings like the last time that she asked him this question.

Her eyes shifted upwards a bit as she then said, "But, Leo it's not fair to me that I can't see you fully in the light,"

Heavily sighing he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand and whispered "Life isn't always fair, Arienne. And if you saw me"

"I wouldn't and don't care what you look like, Leonardo. I just would like to know what my friend looks like, since you see me right here in front of you," she arguably interrupted him.

He was silent for a long time, staring at her and her truthful words ringing in his ears. Arienne may be very shy on meeting new people but, one thing was for sure, she accepted who and what they are besides judging a person by how they look. It was their actions that spoke loudly to her and right now Leo knew that his actions were effecting her.

"May be one day, I will show you what I truly look like," he murmured to her looking at his cup of tea.

Arienne dropped the request for now since her stomach grumbled a bit in protest for food. At the small grumbling sound, Leo looked up at her and smirked.

"So what are you making for dinner?" he asked her.

"That is something that you will find out soon enough," she teased him slightly after she got off of her breakfast chair and walked into the kitchen with her teacup.

"AH! LEO!" she screamed loudly dropping her teacup into the sink so it wouldn't shatter on the floor, he hurried over to the other side of the kitchen and saw a huge wolf spider crawling after Arienne in an aggressive stance.

"Arienne, go into the living room and stay there with your eyes closed. I will deal with this little pest," he ordered her.

"Alright but don't you dare hurt or kill him! Just put him outside," she told him running out of the kitchen in pure terror.

"Of all the things to say to me," he mumbled to himself, trying to think of something to get this spider out of her kitchen safely.

Taking one of his katanas out of their sheaths, he very gently put the tip about an inch from the fang barring spider.

"Come on, go onto my katana so I can get you away from my friend now," he whispered low to it.

It pounced onto the katana with all of its little might and started to bite at it as Leo then walked towards her backdoor and opened it. He then walked into her backyard before he flicked his wrist the spider went sailing nicely into another spider web.

"Now stay away from this house or I will hurt you," he warned the little aggressive spider who showed his fangs one more time at Leo before disappearing into the leaves.

"Arienne, it's safely outside," Leo informed her while he slid her back door shut.

"Thank you Leo. I hate spiders, I just hate them," she said with a small tremble racing through her body.

"I know. The first time that you screamed loudly up on your parent's rooftop I thought someone was attacking you. Boy did I make a mistake about that," he joked with her.

"Ha, ha. Just because you don't have a fond memory of looking under your car seat at the age of 2 ½ close to 3 years old looking for a toy and then seeing a spider as big as a shoe heal attacking you doesn't mean"

"I am joking Ari, I know that when you were that age you were chased down the hallway, running to your mother when the spider was in full chase after you. And I know that it about 4 good tires to actually kill the spider," he chimed in knowing this story way to many times already.

Shivering with dislike, she walked into her kitchen with a shoe in hand, she looked all around her, making Leo snicker at her hesitation to walk comfortably back into her kitchen.

"Don't you snicker at me, young one, I know you have a fear of heights, I can easily put you up on the highest building around this city and see who's laughing then," she playfully scolded him.

Gasping in shock, he said "You wouldn't,"

"Oh I will if you don't stop," she replied back.

"You are evil, Arienne, just evil," he said next, smiling.

"Well at least you know this she-devil," she teased him, smiling too.

"Oh stop the presses! We have a she-devil on the loose!" he joked chuckling softly afterwards.

"No, no, stop the state! We have a true Ninja on the loose! AAH! Someone save me!" she joked further with him as they both started up laughing together.

"I can easily save you," Leo jested at her grinning.

"I will have to get back on that one," was her reply while Leo chuckled.

Arienne got out the fixings for tonight's dinner and Leo watched her. He like to watch her cook. It was almost like him practicing with his ninja lessons and using his katanas. Arienne figured that he had a thing for knifes or swords, whether he could use them to protect people(she figured), or in the kitchen back at his home.

"What are your brothers like, Leo?" She softly engaged him into a conversation of his family.

"Well what else can I tell you about them? You know Donny is the brains of the group, Raph is the hothead or ill tempered of our family and Mikey is the kid out of us all," he rounded off from his mind.

"I know that already, but what is that makes Raph a hothead? Why is Mikey the kid of the family or Donny the brains of the group? And why are you the one with the level head when things look worse?" she reworded her question to him.

"Well Raph has always been very uhm…aggressive. Even when were babies he always had this attitude about him. Mikey is the baby of our family so he can act like a little kid at heart however, it makes things very interesting in our home thanks to him. Donny is almost like Raph, where it was just in him to be aggressive; the same method goes with Donny. He has been smart since we were young and thanks to him, we have better lives to live. And I always had to keep everyone under control, at times I wonder why I even get out of bed, but I wouldn't change it for the world," he tried to explain to her without giving away what his family is.

A unique but delicious smell fanned into Leo's nose and he felt his stomach ache for the food that she was cooking for him.

"Whatever that is, it smells wonderful," he commented to her.

"Thanks, I just hope I have followed the recipe that my grandma did long ago," she replied back smiling.

"You remember this recipe when you were a little girl?" he asked her, stunned.

"Well yeah. I remember different things when I was young but not to a year and half," she answered him.

"Most people would say, babies don't remember anything or toddlers," Leo stated factually to her.

"Pfft! I remember when I was 2 years old, going in for an ear surgery, I had bad earaches to the point where I had to get tubes put in my ears. I may not remember what they did before I was out but I do remember waking up in a white strange big room. And I remember going off to day care for the first, crying my lungs because I wanted to be with my mom. It doesn't depend on the science end of it, it depends on the person on how you remember things," she countered him, a little agitated with that statement.

Leo nodded in agreement, he remembers a lot of interesting situations with his brothers and father when he was young too.

"Yeah," he said softly, trying to calm her down a bit.

"So what is it that you are making?" he asked her wanting to know since it was smelling really good.

"Ah, ah, ah. Not telling you until it's finished, I'm just thankful that I took out these whole chicken breasts earlier today," she hinted to him.

Sighing Leo zipped it for now as he continued to watch her going about the kitchen, cleaning up as she cooked, something that he needs to teach Mikey to do instead of waiting until they had all eaten.

"Want to listen to the radio?" she asked him smiling in his direction.

"Sure, just-?"

"Its on the same station, Leo when we last listened to some tunes. I didn't change," she interrupted him and turned on her TV in the living room area.

Soft meditating music filter through and Leo smirked as he then sat somewhere on the floor behind the couch. Arienne walked out of the kitchen to look for something in the hallway closet and when she glanced over at Leo, she saw a very faintly outline of his body again but this time it was his front.

Her eyes drank in the smooth dark colored skin with elbow pads, his two swords sticking criss cross and pointing downward on his back, his knees pads protected his knees but, what made her eyes widen a bit was that he only had two toes on each of his feet.

Standing there and letting it sink in, she swallowed a bit. Leo didn't know that this was going on, otherwise he would have said no to listening to the music station on the TV.

'So this is why he won't let me see him fully. So I won't judge him like everyone else.' She thought to herself as she blinked a couple of time before she turned away and walked to the closet door and opened it.

It groaned open as Leo then opened his eyes to see the light in her hallway, filtering into the living room where he was sitting.

"Ari, do you need any help in there?" he asked her softly.

Gasping a bit, Arienne turned around but saw no one. Okay may be she was freaking out just a bit.

"I am fine, Leo. I just need to get something from here, please don't lock me in," she replied back, taking deep breathes to calm her racing heart.

"Why would I lock you in?" he asked her, his voice more closer than before.

"Uhm…." She tried to say something but the words died quickly in her throat.

"I need to close the door so I can go use the restroom, if that's alright with you?" he told her, hoping that this little plan of his would work.

"NO! Please!" she shouted at him frightfully.

"Arienne, it's going to be okay," he soothing told her, knowing that something must have happened when she was kid.

"I promise that I will be good, I promise," she mumbled pleadingly to him.

"Ari you're not in trouble," Leo stated to her, now alarmed.

Fear had it's awful grip on her and she couldn't move a single muscle in her legs, all she could do was just stand there.

"Leo, help me," she whispered pleadingly to him.

"I'm trying, I just don't know what to do," he whispered back as he then got a plan.

He acted at once or if he told her this would be a no go. Taking out one of his Katanas and flinging it against the exposed light bulb, the light within the small hallway closet went out and Arienne was met with darkness and walls moving in on her.

Leo very gently nudged her forward with his right elbow to snap her out of her fear. She ran with the chicken rice that she needed from that closet in hand back into the kitchen. She fell to her knees gasping and shaking because of the incident.

"Are you…are you alright?" Leo asked her as he watched her from the doorway, concern about her well being.

"I will be, but can today get any better?" she asked him.

"I don't know," He softly replied to her as she slowly got to her feet and checked whatever it was in the oven.

He noticed that after the fear had worn off on her, she was making the rice with trembling hands.

"Why don't you go sit down in the living room while I make the rice?" he said to her firmly.

"No, I'm fine, Leo"

"I'm sorry, Arienne, but you need to sit down and calm down for a bit. Just please, let me help you," he cut her off.

Heavily sighing she said "Okay, I will go sit down,"

"Just let the music heal you," he softly told her as he watched her walk to the couch in the living room and sit down.

Leo walked into the open lit kitchen of hers and looked at the box next to the stove where she had a pan out for the rice. Leo followed the instructions but when the timer went off, he gulped.

"Am I allowed to check whatever it is in the oven?" he asked her first.

"No, you are not. Cook the rice quickly or I'm coming in," she told him from the wall.

He didn't know which way she would come in from but he quickly put the pan on oven pad and then walked through the dining area before he was in the living room again.

"Is everything alright?" he asked her when she didn't say anything.

"Yes," she replied back as he then heard some cupboards softly opening and closing.

Leo waited until he saw Arienne carrying two plates of their dinner before she walked back into the kitchen to their milk.

He turned off the TV as it went dark again from the living room and sat at the opposite end of her dining table in the dark. Arienne came back out with their milks and napkins before she stopped just one chair away from him and set his milk and napkin on the table.

"Thank you, this smells wonderful," he told her, licking his lips and his mouth watered.

"You're welcome, birthday boy," she replied back as she turned around and walked back to the other end of the table that was lit by the kitchen.

She sat down but her eyes were on Leo. He had them closed for a while before he mumbled low "itadakimas,"

"What was that?" she asked him curiously.

"Huh? Oh it's a costume that I say that before each and every meal I have. It simply means in Japanese, 'I humbly receive'," he explained to her as he took his fork and cut into the hot steamy chicken breast.

"Careful, it's hot, Leo," she told him at once as she blew on hers.

Leo's eyes got really wide because it was scorching hot and he swallowed but the hotness of his bite scolded down his throat and into his stomach as he grabbed his milk and drank from it.

"Whoa, easy, Leo," Arienne told him next seeing how he almost burnt his tongue.

Panting a bit he looked at his plate and then up at her.

"What-?"

"Not spices as you may think, it's just temperature hot from the oven. And it's stuffed Chicken breasts with chicken rice," she interrupted him blowing on her fork again.

"May be I will wait," he said back as he then softly blew on his dinner.

Giggling a bit she shook her head at him.

"If you say so," she teased him.

"May I ask why did you lock up in fear when you were in the hallway closet? What was it that your dad do to you?" Leo asked her as he blew on his fork since he was hungry.

"It wasn't my dad who did it to me. It was Kyle who locked me in an old closet at our grandmother's house that had lots of spiders within it," she expressed heavily to him.

Arching an eye ridge up at her he then asked "But I thought he love"

"He does but, he's a boy, Leo. I bet you know how boys are since you were raised with three younger brothers, pulling pranks and jokes on you a lot," she interrupted him.

"That I do know and he pulled it as a prank or a joke on you?"

"Yeah, that was before I turned 7 and before our dad started to go down the road that he chose,"

They talked throughout much of dinner, Leo easing her into what caused the fear and why she still has a problem with it today. From what Arienne has told him, that even though she was terrified of spiders, she didn't think it was funny when Kyle trapped her in that closet for a whole day.

Leo really wanted to speak with her older brothers because in many ways, they acted like her father, which she has told countless stories to Leo.

Dinner was over with and they had retreated to the rooftop to put the last hours behind them.

Arienne leaned against the swing's rope as her eyes were starting to droop.

"Getting tired?" Leo softly asked her up from his perch in her tree.

"From the swaying of the swing? Yes, but I will be up for another hour after you have left," she replied back.

"Well, you know I have to get back to my family," he said even though she knew this.

"Before you go, I have something for you to take back," she added before she looked up at him.

He stopped the swing from swaying and when he saw her stand up and dig through her pocket, he wondered what did she get him?

"Arienne you didn't have to get me something," he uttered to her slowly climbing down to her height level.

"Non sense. It's your birthday Leonardo and I hope you carry it with you," she brushed his words off with a wave of her hand and then reached up and toward him.

When Leo took the object into his hand he saw that it was a friendship bracelet that was made out of silver titanium steal. On the inside where it was flat, Leo saw something inscriptive within the melt.

"Don't read it here, please. When you get home, you can read it there," she said at once to him.

"Arienne, I…I don't know what to say except…thank you," he stammered back to her, smiling softly down at her.

"You're welcome Leo and happy birthday," she replied back as Leo then put the bracelet on his wrist but hidden by his wrist pads.

He stayed there for as long as he could but, he had to get home. Arienne had clean the kitchen when he had left but suddenly felt lonely. It may have been his birthday but, she enjoyed his company more so then ever before.

Little did she know that this night was just the beginning for Leonardo as he was laying flat on his shell and looking up at a Japanese woman with bright emerald eyes and pitch coal black hair with her long knife pointed at his throat with his brothers and Casey looking onward.

' _Can this night get any worse?'_ he thought to himself.

Fin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! It would be so kind of you to leave a review on what you thought of it. Thank you!
> 
> Alonia143.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the Triceratons come looking for Doctor Honeycut and invade earth, Ari gets captured by the Triceratons along with Casey and April. How will Leo save her without alerting his brothers and friends?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This follows right along the TV series storyline Space Invaders part 1 of the TMNT 03 TV series. I hope you enjoy this.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own TMNT, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Saving Arienne:

"Hey Leo, where you going?" Raph asked him one night as Leo swallowed thickly.

"Out, why? Is that a problem with you now Raph?" he asked him out of defense as he turned to face his younger brother.

"Hey, easy, just curious since you have been acting kind of weird lately and was just wondering if you were alright and wanted to talk about whatever it is that's bothering you?" Raph answered him with concern.

"I'm fine. I just need to clear my head," Leo smoothly lied and then turned around from him and walked out of the lair.

When Leo was safely far away from his home, he ran towards the one person that has been on his mind nearly all day long. Arienne Lyn. Lately they haven't seen one another because of the adventures that Leo and his family have gone through and he missed talking to her.

The last time he saw her was on his birthday and that was nearly three months ago now.

'Too long. I need to see her tonight.' He thought to himself as he ran on the rooftops towards her home that was on the other side of Central Park.

Meanwhile, within her home, Arienne was softly reading a book that she had bought for her classes at the community college that she was now enrolled. However, her heart ached to see the one person that has been gone for nearly three months now.

"Leo," she softly sighed to no one.

Tap, tap.

Alert now and looking at her dark windows, she swallowed nervously because she still couldn't quite get the attacks on when the City was at War with one another. Strangely, after the attacks stopped, Leo had disappeared, as if he never existed at all.

Tap, tap.

Getting up slowly, she held her small book in her hands as she walked closer to the window that was on the second floor of her home. Very quickly, she opened the window and looked outside.

"Ari?" his voice filtered down to her.

"Leo?" she asked him quietly.

"May I please come in?" he asked her hopefully.

She backed away from the window and then turned off the lights as her heart screamed and thrashed that it could be a trap. A shadow and then a familiar figure swung into the room, landing silently and lightly on her carpet floor.

This was the closet that either of one has ever been with each other. She could easily make out the roundness of his back with his two weapons sticking up as his white eyes locked on her.

"If you're really my friend Leo, what happened three months ago? In the kitchen?" she asked him wanting to know if it was him or not.

"You were making stuffed chicken breasts for my birthday dinner. You told me a lot of things about yourself and of your family. I had overheard your two older brothers argue with you when you were attacked by the two Purple Dragons when the City was at War with the street gangs. You gave me a bracelet that I still wear"

"What is the engraving on the bracelet?" she cut him off, her eyes narrowing a bit.

Leo heavily sighed and whispered "I never really got the chance to read it,"

Arienne's eyes flickered up and down him briefly.

"Alright, what did you write to me before you left?" she asked him in code.

Leo swallowed hard, he knew that she was putting him through these series of tests because she didn't quite trust that it was actually him and not someone else.

"Ari, I am sorry for not being here when you woke up, however I had to get back to my brothers. I will meet up with you near the swing. Please don't be late. Leo" he said to her knowingly.

Her eyes looked directly into his as he shifted from one foot to the other. His desire to hold her in his arms was too strong, he had to do something or she would find out on what he truly was.

"I am sorry that I have been gone for a few months, Arienne. It wasn't like I had a choice, I had to look after my family but you were never too far away from me in thought and hope," he said to her truthfully.

"I know, that is why I put the saying on your bracelet because it speaks a lot louder then what I can say to you now," she softly replied to him, slowly dropping her guard completely around him.

"What does it say?" he asked her, not wanting to take off the bracelet that she got him for his past birthday.

"I can't tell you, you have to read it for yourself," she told him walking over to her chair and sitting back down on it.

Leo sighed to himself as he then turned back to the window and closed it. While he was getting his bracelet off of his wrist, he wondered what was so important about the saying. What did she put that nearly had her choking on her own words and emotions?

After he took it off, he leaned forward towards the light that was filtering in through the room.

"Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never ever the same," it said as he felt his heart stilled for a moment.

He glanced over at her small body frame with her book prompt back in her lap but her eyes were strictly on him. He knew that she was mature then he was and had the knowledge like that of his younger brother, Donny but, he didn't expect this from her.

Arienne watched him carefully, her eyes drinking in his rounded back and his weapons strapped onto his body. He was very still and was looking at her with wide eyes or so she thought.

He had turned around to face her and walked slowly over to her chair. She looked up into his eyes as he held his bracelet in between his two fingers and hoped that she could lock it back on his wrist.

"I don't know what to say but I feel the same way about you too," he softly murmured to her.

Her eyes widen in shock for a split second before she gently took his wrist into her hands and fastened it back on him. Leo was torn between panic and thankfulness. What if she knew what he was? Would she run away from him like so many others have done before her?

"Want to go downstairs? I made an apple crisp pie earlier yesterday afternoon," she suggested to him, making things calmer for his nerves.

"As long as you don't mind walking a head of me?" he replied to her with a smile.

"Alright, come on lion," she teased him and walked in front of him.

"I am not a lion, lioness," he teased back, grinning.

"I am not a lioness," she protested back.

"Yes you are," he chuckled softly.

Leo noticed that while he was gone, she had finished her extra rooms as they passed them. Two bedrooms and an office/study room next to the bathroom.

"I am not the one that is named after a lion, Leo," she grumbled to him.

"What? I was named"

"I know, I know," she softly cut him off as they walked down the stairs and into the kitchen that was dark.

Leo kept to the shadows when the lights came on and waited for her in the living room.

"I guess whatever happened when you were away, has been on your mind lately?" she asked him, softly poking at it.

Heavily sighing he then sat down on her couch and closed his eyes.

"Is it possible for me to fall in love so quickly?" he asked her as she came walking into the living room but her eyes widen a bit.

"Who do you like?" she returned to him and gently put his plate on the coffee table as she sat in the love seat.

"Her name is Karai but she's my enemy's daughter. I fought alongside and I have noticed that she has honor like my family does but"

"She is still on your enemy's side or with her father?" she finished slowly for him.

Her heart was pounding fast, she didn't know that he had met someone when he was gone. Within the darkness of her living room, she down casted her eyes.

"Yes. What do I do, Ari?" Leo asked her for help.

"That is something that I can't help you with because like you said, she's the daughter of your enemy. Just because she's female doesn't mean she will not hurt you just to get what she wants, Leo," Arienne told him wisely.

Leo let her words sink in and then looked down at the plate in front of him. Leaning forward and gently cutting into the piece of the apple crisp pie, he pondered on something.

"Have you ever been in love?" he asked her gently.

"No, not love but lust I have and in many ways I don't like it," she answered him with knowledge.

He looked over at her and then asked "Who have you lust over and why that person was the focus of your lust?"

"Two questions within one wanting to know," she told to him in cryptic code.

Leo swallowed his bite and blushed.

"I am sorry Ari, it's just that we never talked about this subject before and correct me if I'm wrong, but, it seems that you have been hurt by someone-"

"I have and even though I am over the situations, at times my mind can't help but go back to those somewhat embarrassing times," she cut him off.

Leo knew that she wasn't going to open fully up to him on this subject. From the way that she was looking at him and not touching her piece of pie, he softly dropped the subject.

"All I can say is be careful with what you say or do around this Kara?" she told him as he wanted to correct her on Karai's name but he didn't.

"I noticed that you finished your bedrooms since the last time that I was here," he changed the subject.

Arienne nodded silently, she softly chewed her piece of pie slowly. Leo knew something was upsetting her, he just didn't know if the subject that they briefly talked about was it or was it something entirely different?

"Please talk to me, Arienne. Whatever I have said or done while I was here, I am sorry," he told her wishing he knew what was wrong.

"You didn't do anything Leo, it's just that I am stressed from work and college and I haven't slept correctly since we last met," she truthfully explained to him, letting her shoulders sag a bit.

"No one will come here, Ari. I made sure that the wars of this city stopped because of what had happened to you. I couldn't face the truth that you could have been killed because of me," he said, gently putting his now empty plate on her coffee table again.

Slowly looking up at him, Arienne got up and then walked to where his empty plate was and took it into the kitchen. She let his words tumble in her mind.

'If he is so concerned about my well being…why doesn't….knock it off brain.' She thought to herself and sighed.

She walked back the way she came but ran into something and landed on her butt, softly rubbing her nose.

"Ow," she mumbled as she then looked up at the shape of Leo.

"Are you alright? I didn't mean …I…I am sorry," he stammered to her.

"I will be and you are forgiven Leo," she told him while he nodded to her.

She slowly got to her feet and then rubbed her butt with her hands to get the pain to disappear.

"You really are exhausted huh?" he stated to her, as his eyes looked her over more closely.

"Well, yes," Ari said to him.

"Why don't you go to sleep? I will keep watch," he suggested to her.

"But what about you? Your family?" she asked him.

"I'll be fine and besides, they won't expect me home any time soon," he reassured her.

"If you say so," she mumbled low to him and then walked back up her stairs and down her hallway as Leo slowly followed her.

He then noticed that she took the door off of her doorframe that led up to her bedroom. Giving her the privacy to change out of her sweat pants so she could be in her bed, Leo waited below until he saw the light turn off. He walked up the silent steps and then looked to his left. She was snuggled into her pillows and blankets but her eyes were looking directly at him.

He walked the rest of the way up and looked around for any place to hide. There were no shadows since she had put a huge window seat to look out into Central Park. The massive amount of lighting that filter through suddenly made Leo nervous.

Arienne on the other hand saw him enter her bedroom but she didn't turn over onto her back. She was giving him a chance to see that she trusted him fully, whatever he may look like.

"May I close your blinds?" he asked her softly.

"Sure, their giving me a headache anyway," she replied back as Leo softly closed the blinds to her windows.

Now that it was utterly dark, he turned to look at her. She was softly shifting about but, he was a bit stunned since he blushed a bit.

"How's your job going? Still having troubles with Morgan?" he whispered low to her.

"Troubles with whom? She didn't last long, Leo. And it's wonderful, I learn history every single day and I am not just within the Japanese Art area anymore, I have been promoted to other historical arts too," she whispered back to him, her eyes fluttering close.

Leo was happy for her but, she was already fast asleep within her bed. He didn't know how long he stayed in her bedroom nor did he care if he shell cell went off and turned it off with the tracker inside. He was being a bit greedy with his stay with Arienne.

Walking over to her sleeping peaceful form, Leo sat on the right side of her bed. His eyes drank her face in before he leaned down and very gently pressed his lips to her forehead.

"I'll be back tomorrow night. I promise, Arienne," he whispered to her as she then turned towards him and took hold of his hand.

"Catch that fish Leo," she muttered in her sleep as Leo smiled down at her.

"I caught the fish, Ari, now what?" he whispered low to her.

"Eat it," she muttered again and then fell back into a deeper slumber.

Holding his laughter back, Leo pressed his lips one more time to her forehead and tucked her hand under her pillow before he left her house.

* * *

 

The next day, Arienne was up and about since she finally got a good night's sleep. She was hoping that Leo would be within the branches of the trees but her hopes fell when he wasn't.

It was around two-ish when all hell broke loose. The skies were filled with Alien space ships and alien transporters combing the city. Arienne was walking home from work when it happened. She couldn't quite believe her eyes, Triceratops were invading Earth and killing people at random or so it seemed.

Down under, the city within its sewers, the turtles and their father were gathered around the massive amounts of TV's.

"This was the scene moments ago in Times Square," the male reporter said from the TV's.

Leo gasped when he saw Arienne running for her life and then from what looked like it, being stunned or killed by the Triceratons. Turning around and running right out of the lair, he didn't care if his brothers noticed that he was gone or not, Arienne needed him.

"My sons it is very important that you all stay in the lair until…" Master Splinter began but stopped when no one was there, shaking his head.

Meanwhile, Leo and his brothers were hiding behind a water tower as they watched the "aliens" go by on their trans mat and spaceships.

"Triceratons!" Leo informed his brothers.

"I hate those guys! We got to do something!" Raph retorted back, smacking his balled up hand against his other palm.

"But what can we do against an entire invasion?" Donny asked next, looking at his brothers for clues.

Leo had this sharp expression on his face. He wanted to speak his mind about Arienne, but he knew that he couldn't.

"It is the end of the world as we know it, and I don't feel fine," Mikey expressed to them.

Jumping down into a nearby alleyway, Leo stayed silent unless he knew the answer to the questions.

"I don't get it. With all of the planets within the galaxy? Why here? Why earth?" Donny asked out loud thinking on it.

"May be that horn head Zanramon is still mad at us for stealing his personal space courser? He, he. It was a pretty sweet ride," Raph joked and gloated a bit.

Heavily shaking his head Leo then stated "I don't think this is about us. We're not important enough for them to travel half way across the universe,"

Leo listened to his little brother but his thoughts kept circling around Arienne. Was she alright? What did the Triceratons want with her? When he and his brothers had stayed too long within the alleyway, Leo at once had them all hide behind a dumpster.

* * *

 

Slowly waking up and hearing lots of different voices around her, Arienne opened her eyes as she saw a woman with her boyfriend hovering over her.

"Are you alright?" the woman whispered to her.

"Yes, just what is going on?" she asked her back, slowly sitting up.

"We don't know. However, what I do know is that they are gathering people at random and then bringing them here to Central Park. They're not going to sacrifice us to their leader are they?" the woman's boyfriend answered Arienne.

"I don't think so," Arienne whispered calmly to him, her eyes looking around as she saw the large Triceratons holding weapons in a circle around the other people.

"What do they want?" the woman asked Arienne.

"That one I don't know," she replied back slowly getting to her wobbly legs.

The man steadied her out as he put his hands on her hips. His girlfriend and Arienne both looked at him as he then backed away.

"What's your name?" the woman asked her.

"Arienne Lyn, I work"

"At the Art museum, I saw you give a very small tour for the first when I went there a few months back," the woman cut in smiling.

"Oh, well I didn't see you…what are your names?" she asked them both.

"Tracy Evans and this is my boyfriend Russell Day," Tracy replied back.

"It's nice to meet you both but not under these events," Arienne said in a low whisper as the group of people were huddled closer to one another as more aliens came with more captured humans.

Arienne gasped when she saw April and her boyfriend Casey within the group.

"April!" Arienne said to her walking hurriedly over to her and Casey who looked confused on who she was.

"Do I know you?" April asked her confused.

"I'm uhm…"

"Get a move on! Everyone in a single line, head straight!" one of the Triceratons shoved one of the people forward.

Like a herd of sheep, everyone that was in Central Park, formed a line and walked straight to wherever they were going.

"Call Leo and tell him where we are," Arienne whispered sternly to April.

April wondered how this young woman knew of her friends but she did get her weird looking cell phone out and called him.

"Hello?" Arienne heard his voice on the other end.

"Leo, guys. It's April. Casey and I are kind of in a tight spot," April whispered low to him.

"Leo help," Ari whispered low so he could hear her too.

"April, I can't hear you, can you talk a little louder?" Leo asked her as he had heard Arienne's voice.

"Uhm…not really. We're being held by these aliens. Their big and ugly and they stink," April replied to him but Arienne had backed off now, slowly walking in the line of the other people.

"They got a bunch of us here in Central Park," April began to tell him but one of the Triceratons crunched the shell cell up.

Somewhere in the heart of New York, Leo panicked because his heart was up in his throat, Arienne was with April and Casey.

"Hello? Ar-April? No!" he corrected himself quickly before he looked to his brothers.

"They got April and Casey! Their taking them to Central Park!" he exclaimed as his thoughts were now circling around the one person that none of his family, friends or his enemies know about.

Leo was going to go at all coasts to get Arienne out of there, with also getting April and Casey out too. The question that entered his mind was, how? How could he do that while his brothers were with him?

Raph saw a gleam within his older brother's eyes. A gleam that wasn't for April or Casey. It was for someone else beside their friends. Raph thought it over very quickly in his mind and would talk to Leo about whoever he was seeing lately later.

"Then why are we sitting here twiddling our shells? Let's move!" Raph told him and then jumped off of the rooftop towards Central Park.

Leo followed right after his younger brother, his heart was in his throat as he worried about Arienne, April and Casey.

Back in Central Park, Arienne and the other small group of people were crowded around a huge bolder out of protection. Arienne was helping a little boy calm down when they saw the other small group join them.

"Hey! Quit pushing pal!" Casey snapped angrily at the Triceraton guard.

Shoving Casey forward as if it was nothing the guard growled "Get moving weakling,"

"Casey!" April exclaimed worriedly as Arienne then looked above her.

Three hovering platforms circled around everyone, making a tight triangle shape cage with some sort of advanced technology beam ray. Arienne felt the little boy claim up into her lap and wrap his arms and legs around her as he shook fearfully.

"I'm here, little guy, I'm here," Arienne whispered calmly to the boy who buried his face into her collarbone.

Not giving up Arienne saw Casey punch the beam but was bounced back as it shocked him a bit.

"What do we do? What do we do?" the little boy asked Arienne who started to softly cry on her.

"We wait and do as we are told," She whispered truthfully to him as she shifted him a bit in her arms.

Leo glanced at the cage that his friends were in and when he spotted Arienne with a little boy in her arms, he grounded his teeth in irritation.

"Casey and April must be in there somewhere," Donny whispered low to the rest of his brothers.

"Nice, a portable Alcatraz. Now everyone is going to want one," Mikey dryly joked half seriously.

Leo's mind was racing on how to free his friends and the other people in the cage. Raph noticed how his older brother was glaring and grinding his teeth together with that hell or high water expression.

"Let's get ready to kick some shell!" he said to his brothers just to see what Leo would do or say next.

"Hold it, Raph! We're way outnumbered! We need to use our heads." Leo had told him as he put a hand on his brother's shoulder to stop him from going out with his plan.

"Guess that leaves Mikey out." Raph teased Mikey but knew that someone that Leo knew was in that cage.

Mikey smiled and twiddled his fingers against one another as he stated "You know, if all those people were set free at once, there'd be a lot of confusion."

"Mikey had a good idea?" Raph asked Leo stunned.

Leo too was stunned as he said back, "Mikey had a good idea."

Leo looked back at the cage and saw Arienne being harassed by the Triceraton guards. That just about did it for Leonardo.

"Donny, how do we get the cage down," he nearly growled at him.

"Well you see that? The cage is held by those three hovering platforms. If we knock out one, the whole thing should come crashing down," Donny answered him as Leo nodded.

"Get away from us!" Leo then heard from the group, knowing who it was that said it.

"Ari," he barely uttered any sound as he watched two guards looking her over like some sort of prize.

"Mikey, Raph. See that you can set up a diversion so that Donny and I can get in close enough to take out one of the platforms. Let's move!" he told everyone and ran towards the cage.

Arienne was now in the middle of the group with the small boy in her arms. He was sleeping peacefully since it was just too much for his little brain to take. The guards however were nodding and pointing at her, whatever they wanted she had on.

Suddenly a space ship came floating down and very gently landed next to the cage. Arienne's hope was fading, she knew that Leo was here, she could easily sense his presence but she didn't know where he was.

"Hey, little guy, come on wake up," she barely whispered to the boy in her tired arms.

"Hmm…mommy?" he said to her as she blushed a bit.

"I'm not your mommy, little guy but you have to wake up," she whispered low to him as he woke up in a snap.

"I thought that this was a horrible nightmare? Why can't anyone save us?" he whispered back, hugging her neck again.

"Because everyone is confused and fearful of these aliens. I'm Arienne Lyn. I work at the art museum just some odd blocks from here," she told him to ease the tension.

"I'm Cody Weston, I live with my mom but I got separated from her when all of this started," he replied back to her, calming down a bit.

"After this is over with, Cody, I promise to get you back with your mother," Ari promised him.

Cody simply nodded as thick heavy tears trickled down his face.

"It will be alright, a friend of mine will be here soon. I got in contact with him a little bit a go and he and his brothers will save us," she whispered nearly in his small ear.

"He is?" Cody asked her hope filling his heart.

She nodded gently to him and said "He should since he and I have been friends for nearly six months now,"

When the spaceship opened, Arienne stayed near the bolder as more Triceraton guards came out of it and two of them were heading towards her and Cody.

Everything very suddenly happened in chaos. The guards circled the small group as Arienne was pushing Cody up on the bolder.

"Air, but…" he protested.

"Climb, Cody, climb!" she told him as he did what he was told.

Arienne then stood in front, as two other guards joined the first one.

"You stay away from us!" she growled at them.

"Take her! She was recently in contact with the Fugitoid!" The guard told the others.

"Air! Please, don't go!" Cody begged her.

"I won't," she replied back to him but he was already in midflight as Arienne had to think fast.

By sheer luck and jumping forward, she caught Cody who clung to her fearfully.

"Why didn't"

"Because you promised that you would get me reunited with my mom," he cut her off.

Heavily sighing, she nodded and put him on her back. Cody then started to throw small rocks at the guards.

"Stun her!" one of the guards said and fired at her.

The purple beam hit her so fast that she didn't have time to react or move away from it. She fell to the ground with Cody on her back.

"Air! Air!" he cried panicking.

The guards walked closer to her limp body before taking her away from Cody. He threw a rock at the back of the guard's head out of anger and wanting Arienne back.

"You let her go!" he said to them, glaring.

"Take him too," the guard only said as Cody was stunned.

Mean while Leo watched all of this go down from his hiding place. Donny noticed how tense and focused his older brother was acting to this but he also noticed that Leo's eyes were on the young woman and the child being taking away.

"Now Donny," Leo said to him after he and his brother confirmed the diversion was a success by Mikey.

Leo jumped up with unsheathing his katanas and slicing through one of the platforms, breaking the cage open.

Leo looked around as he and Donny were now out in the open, his eyes soon found the guard that was taking Arienne and the little boy to the spaceship.

"Ari!" Leo exclaimed as he ran after the guard and kicked him in the back.

Donny didn't know what to think of his actions or who this woman was. the crowd was running all over the place as they were set free but Donny also noticed that April was on the spaceship where Arienne and the little boy were.

'She must be the one that Leo is seeing. I have to get to them and set them free!' Donny thought determined as he ran towards April and threw his bo staff at one of the guards, knocking him flat on his face.

"April! You get away from them!" Donny then stated as he knocked both of the two other guards away.

"Air! Air! Please wake up," Cody said trying to wake her up by gently shaking her right shoulder.

"I could just kiss you!" April said happily to Donny as she hugged him from behind.

"Really? Oh!" he said smiling and blushing a bit.

When Donny told April to get the rest of people out of the spaceship, he walked hurriedly over to where Arienne and Cody were.

"You get away from her!" Cody snapped angrily at him.

"Easy, I'm not going to hurt either one of you. I just want to-"

"You must be Leo! The friend that she talked to me about!" Cody interrupted Donny who blinked at this new information.

"Yes, now, can you help me so I can get her out of here?" he said to Cody who nodded and then helped Donny lift Arienne up into his arms as Casey had used a branch to knock out some of the other guards.

"Casey! Take her and the little boy to safety! She needs help!" Donny said to him as he very gently handed Arienne's body over to Casey.

"If you hurt her, I swear-"

"Easy kid, I won't hurt your mother. Just take my hand and let's book!" Casey interrupted Cody who glared at him.

"Step back horn heads! Nice and slow," Donny said while he was still on the spaceship.

"Ah!" he said when he got stunned and knocked out.

"Donny! No!" April cried as she couldn't do anything to stop them.

"Take him prisoner," one of the guards grunted and two of the guards took Donny's lifeless body into their ship and started her up.

When Casey was a good distance away with Cody's hand in his and Arienne's body on his shoulders, he glanced around and saw Leo.

"Leo!" he shouted to him.

"Casey, what…Arienne," Leo said back, hurrying over to him as he very gently took Arienne's body into his arms.

"She's breathing, but ow!" Casey began but hopped on his left leg when Cody ran towards Leo.

"Who are you Turtle? Which one of you is Leo that Air spoke of?" he demanded.

"I am the real Leo and her name isn't Air, its Arienne. However, who are you? I know she doesn't have a kid or I would have"

"She's not my mother, she helped me when we were captured in that cage. She promised me to get me reunited with my real mother as I got separated from when all of this happened," Cody interrupted him.

Kneeling down to the ground, Leo made sure Ari's head was softly in his lap as he looked up at Cody.

"What's your name?" he asked him simply.

"Cody Weston. Air said that she had called you and that you were coming to rescue us. Why did that other turtle lie to me?" Cody asked Leo who widen his eyes.

"That was my brother. Arienne knows of him and I am assuming that he wanted to get you both to safety, Cody," Leo answered him truthfully.

"You are just like her, Air I mean. She wouldn't lie to me on what was going on, she kept telling me the truth even though I was frighten. She will be alright, right Leo?" Cody stated to him, hoping that Arienne would be.

Leo looked back down at the unconscious young woman who was in his lap.

"They only stunned her, Cody. She will wake up soon. She's like that with me too whenever I don't want to hear anything that I disagree about," he softly told the little boy.

Casey however was shocked by how Leo was reacting to this young woman. It was as if he was purely in love with her even though Casey never met her in his life.

"Leo, when have you been sneaking out and seeing your girlfriend?" Casey asked him as Leo blushed at this.

"She's not my girlfriend-"

"She's a girl and she's your friend, thus she's your girlfriend," Casey interrupted him.

"Casey, please I am begging you, do not tell anyone of Arienne to my brothers or anyone else," Leo requested from him.

"But Leo, we will"

"I will do whatever it is that you want from me, a movie night with the guys, front row seats to a hockey game, anything. Just please keep this a secret about her and I," Leo interrupted him, begging fully now as he very gently took Arienne into his arms and hugged her to him.

"Alright Leo. I will promise to keep this a secret, however I think Donny will know of her too since Cody here said you were him. But we all will find out about her soon enough as well as our enemies. Nothing can be kept a secret if you're a ninja, Leo," Casey replied back seeing how Leo was finally relaxed and snuggling into Arienne's shoulder and neck area.

Leo ignored the last part from Casey as he then asked "Can she and Cody stay at your grandmother's house out in the country?"

"Sure but, I would have to make a few trips to the grocery store and such," he replied back.

"Leo, why won't she wake up?" Cody asked him worriedly as he knelt down beside Arienne's limp body.

"It takes a lot for a human to wake up after being stunned, Cody. She will be alright now, don't worry. You have to be brave like she was in protecting you from the Triceratons. When you are brave and courageous you will not disappoint her," Leo wisely told him as he looked at the little boy.

Cody may be just a child but he was a lot braver then he looked. His mouse chocolate brown hair swayed in the light breeze his deep royal blue eyes glistened with tears as he wanted Arienne to wake up.

"I'll try, Leo," Cody whispered as he hung his head.

"Casey…never mind he's already on it," Leo mumbled to himself after he noticed that Casey was gone to get the van.

It didn't take Casey long to get to the van and high tail it where Leo and Cody were. Very gently, Leo lifted Arienne's body into his arms.

'For the longest time I have wanted to hold her, to hug her to me but not like this.' He bitterly thought to himself.

When Cody had gotten into the front seat with Arienne laying in the back securely, Leo very gently leaned down and kissed her forehead. Casey didn't miss this as he wondered how long Leo has been seeing this young woman?

"Take very special care of her. She means a lot to me," He said to either one.

"I will," Both Casey and Cody said at once.

"Cody, I want you to see this. This is a shell cell, like that of a cell phone but better. This button that is on hers, will call me at once. Do not use this unless you have no one to help you, do you understand me?" Leo showed Cody his Shell cell to him.

Cody looked it over and then nodded to him.

"Good, Casey, take them out of here before my brothers and April find out," Leo stated to them both and walked away from the van.

"Don't worry Leo, she'll be fine," Casey replied back and started the van back up and then drove away.

"Be safe, Ari," Leo whispered into the soft breeze as he watched the van until it disappeared from sight.

* * *

 

Arienne moaned a little and felt really sore. It was as if she had run nearly 190 miles and then some as she slowly opened her eyes. She wasn't in the city anymore and from what she could see of Cody's eyes looking back at her, she knew that they were safe.

"Air! You're awake!" he exclaimed to her happy that she finally woke up.

"Wha…What happened?" she asked him groggily.

"Leo came and saved us. He beat the bad guys up and then told me and Stacey"

"It's Casey. And you must be really special if Leo risked everything to save you," she heard Casey's voice a little way from her.

She saw him sitting in a recliner that was broken down and looked very old and dusty.

"Leo rescued me?" she asked him, her mind was very slow to get going after being stunned.

"Yeah. You should have seen him Air! He had two swords and he used them to cut the cage apart! He then"

"He didn't cut the cage apart, he cut one of the platforms in half and that what broke the cage kid," Casey interrupted him again.

"Call me kid one more time and I will kick your butt!" Cody snapped angrily at him.

"Easy, both of you. Cody, don't make threats, it's not nice and you can get into a lot trouble with them. A five minute time out should be good for you," Arienne told him with a stern look.

"But! But!" Cody protested as she shook her head at him.

"Sit and be silent for five minutes while I talk to St-I mean Casey," she told him.

Cody folded his arms over his chest and remained silent.

"Did anyone else see me with Leo?" Ari asked Casey who nodded.

"Donny did as well as April and I but, that's it. I don't think Raph or Mikey or anyone else that we know of saw him with you. But like I said to him and I'm going to say it to you too. Keeping this uhm…secret of you two from his enemies will get out and when it does, I won't say I didn't told you so," he answered her with his warning.

"You have known him and his family for some time now, can you tell me what he looks like?" she asked him hopefully.

"Ah! Zip it Cody and no I can't. If Leo won't tell you what he looks like than I won't either. It's something you have to come to an understanding about him and his… uh…unique family. What I can tell you is this: you seem that you don't judge people by how they look, which I think we need a lot of people like you in this world, but by how that person's actions," he said to them both but more seriously to Arienne.

"Will he be here any time soon?" Arienne asked him with hopeful eyes.

"I don't think so, Arienne. He said for me to keep you up here until all of this blows over, which I have a funny feeling that won't be any time soon. The Triceratons are looking for robot who knows how to transporter thing-y and the robot isn't here anymore, or so what the guys have told April and me," Casey explained heavily to her as she dropped her eyes to the floor.

A soft groan came from Arienne's stomach as she looked down at it and blushed.

"Sorry, I haven't eaten anything since lunch," she mumbled to them.

"How about I go and get some groceries? There isn't that much food here and with you living here for a while, I think I need to load the whole van up," Casey sheepishly replied back.

"That would be great," she told him smiling a little.

Casey soon left the house as Arienne was playing cards with Cody. He brought out the shell cell that he swiped from Casey from earlier.

"Leo told me that if you needed anything, just to give him a call. He's really cool Air, I just wish I could tell you what he looks like but I know I would get into trouble if I do," he explained to her and handing it over.

She gently took it into her hands and then looked up at Cody.

"I know that this may sound strange coming from me and all but, I guess since I have waited this long, I can stand some more waiting. I wonder if I would get into trouble if I called him?" she said looking the cell phone over.

'This is really odd. Why would he have a cell phone shaped like a turtle shell? And why did Cody say "shell cell" instead of cell phone? More pieces to this mysterious puzzle I suppose.' She thought to herself as she pressed a button it opened up.

Gasping at this, Cody was right beside her as she then pressed another button on the key pad.

"Cody? What's wrong?" Leo asked her.

"It's me, Ari, Leo and"

"I told him not to call me unless it was an emergency, Casey! I have to go. I will call you when this is over with," Leo sternly interrupted her and then hung up.

Feeling a little disappointed and sad, she looked over at Cody who sheepishly grinned at her.

"I'm sorry, Air. I…I didn't…" he stammered to her.

"It's okay, I wanted to hear him since all of this has started anyway. Now want to help me go exploring around the rooms in this house?" she asked him changing the subject.

"You bet I do!" he replied back excited to do something.

Arienne slowly got to her feet with his help and they walked slowly out of the living room and into the narrow kitchen.

"It's cramped in here," Cody complained.

"It's a country style home, almost all of the kitchens are like that," She commented to him.

What caught her eye then was a few pictures on the fridge. Walking slowly over to them, she saw Casey from when he was a young boy until she saw four people in turtle costumes. One picture had a single turtle person with a blue mask and two swords sticking out from behind his back, just like Leo's. Very gently, she took it off of the fridge and dusted it off.

Cody remained silent and utterly still on her finding.

"I hope Casey won't mind if I keep this," she said to Cody who zipped his lips shut with his fingers.

Tucking the picture away into her pockets she and Cody then walked out of the kitchen and into the den front room area of the house where an old fashion fireplace stood to the right and an old Television set stood with a few chairs and couch.

"Hmm….may be you can help me later on getting the fire going in this freezing house?" she asked Cody who groaned.

"I don't like chopping fire wood," he complained to her.

"You won't be, I will. I just need you to carry the chopped up logs and I will get the fire going. Now where are the bedrooms, bathrooms and second floor to this place?" she firmly told him, not wanting him to get seriously hurt with an axe or the fire itself.

"It's over here," Cody pointed to her the staircase as they made their up towards it.

With a simple glance outside, Arienne saw that the sun was completely gone and it was utterly dark out except the lights from the living room area.

As they explored the second level, Arienne felt something within her stomach. It twisted and turned and she knew that her gut was telling her that Casey wasn't coming back.

"Cody, where's the Ce..I mean the Shell cell? I need to call Leo," she told him worriedly.

"But he said that he would call you when he could"

"I need to tell him that Casey isn't coming back for us with the groceries," she interrupted him with sad disappointing eyes.

"How do you know?" Cody softly asked her confused and sad.

"My gut told me that something isn't right and Casey hasn't come yet within the last few hours," she answered him the best she could.

Cody slowly nodded and gave her the shell cell after he pulled it out of his pocket. Pressing the button just like before and then the first button on the key pad Arienne waited as it rang.

"Cody? Please-"

"Casey hasn't come back Leo and I'm getting worried about not feeding Cody," she cut him off.

"What! Ari, let me handle this and I will personally be up there with you as soon as I can, but right now, the Triceratons are leaving earth and I'm heading home," he said to her softly.

"Hey Leo, who ya talkin to?" Arienne heard in the background.

"I've got to go and I'll handle it," he whispered sternly to her.

"Okay and be careful, Leo," she told him as Leo then hung up.

Cody smiled brightly up at her as she felt much better now. They explored the rest of the house and very soon found themselves outside chopping up the logs for the fireplace.

When they heard a car pulling into the driveway, Arienne had Cody lock the front and back doors, closed the drapes and turned on the kitchen lights.

"What do we do?" he whispered low to her frightfully.

"We wait to see who it is and then if we know them then we come out of our hiding spots, but if we don't, I want you to throw those logs at the person with all your strength, do you understand me Cody?" she replied back low to him.

"I do, Air," he mumbled as they waited when the car drove up to the house.

When the car was shut off, the doors closing and then a jiggle on the door handle, Arienne crouched down with Cody beside her.

"Arienne? You inside?" they both heard Leo's voice.

"I'm back! I'm sorry! I'm back!" Casey's whining voice came through.

"What if it's a trap?" Cody asked her.

"Then we will put them through a little test. Quick, think of what Leo said to Casey that only Casey knows of?" she said to him before she came out behind the couch and walked towards the front door.

"Leo? Is that really you?" she asked him through the front door.

"You wrote a story about a mythical blue dragon and a maid's daughter taking care of the blue dragon," he said to her as she knew it was Leo.

"And what about Casey? Is it really him? Or is this some sort of trap?" she asked him next.

"I told you that I wouldn't say I told you so if Leo's enemies ever found out about you and him," Casey said next.

Not quite believing it was Casey, she unlocked the front door and slowly opened it. There stood Casey with his arms full of grocery bags with a shadow near the front porch.

"Leo are you sure that this is-?"

"Stacey!" Cody said beside her as she glanced down at him as Casey glared at him.

"It's Casey, you know with a C? I'm not a girl," Casey growled low shifting his bags a bit.

"Casey is for a girl dummy," Cody retorted but Arienne very gently flicked her fingers on his left shoulder.

"Ow!" Cody said to her, rubbing his shoulder a bit, as Leo snickered low at this.

"Enough the both of you, come in and Cody and I will stay in the living room area, so you guys can bring in the food," She said to them both.

"Yes Ma'am," Casey replied to her as she put her arm around Cody's shoulders and steered him away from the front door.

"Why did you flick my shoulder? I was only doing what you told me to do?" he exclaimed to her, looking up into her eyes.

"I know, and he passed the test. When they have put everything away, how about I make you some dinner with hot coco?" she replied back to him, gently getting on her hands and knees so she could put more logs in the fire place.

"What are you going to be making for dinner?" Leo asked her as he was carrying the last of the bags from the van.

"It depends on what you guys bought," she answered him, using a stick to move the logs around and the very quickly put in another log and then closed the door as heat flooded the room.

"What makes playing with fire so dangerous?" Cody asked her as she looked at him and then smiled softly.

"Fires are dangerous for the heat and flames that they create. The flames themselves look beautiful but they hurt. Come here," she said to him as he got up and walked over to her before he sat down in her lap.

"Feel how hot the heat is? It's almost like that of the sun's summer rays doesn't it?" she asked him, cocking her head to the right so she could see his face and keep an eye on the fireplace too.

"Yeah, it's almost too hot for me," Cody answered her, moving back until his back was against her stomach.

"Not only does it burn hot but if you knock a candle or a liter over and the flames spread, you will die within them. Now do you understand why playing with fire is dangerous?" she stated truthfully to him.

Cody nodded to her as she then scooted backwards until she got to her feet and helped Cody up as he walked over to the couch and started to play with the cards that they had found earlier.

"You're really good with kids," Leo muttered in the shadows of the stairs.

"I use to babysit for a long time, mostly with children around Cody's age. Sometime it can be stressful but it's rewarding in the end," she shrugged at him as Leo smiled softly at her.

She walked into the kitchen as she found Casey putting away the food.

"What did you guys get?" she asked him looking at the many empty plastic bags.

"Everything from bread, eggs and bacon to lettuce, rice, milk and cereal," he answered her as she nodded.

"We also got some steaks, two whole chickens and some pork," Leo's voice drifted into the kitchen.

"Hmm…Casey, can you get some rice, the steaks, and if you guys bought it some corn, carrots and peas please?" she asked him since she didn't know her way around this kitchen like she did with her own back home.

"I-I ma'am!" he said to her, saluting too.

After Casey had gotten everything out, Arienne smiled at the teriyaki steaks and grabbed those.

"Fry pan with oil?" she asked him looking around as he went and got it for her.

"What about the other steaks?" he asked her confused.

"Can you put them away for me, please?" she told him as she dug around for some pots.

"Yes Ma'am," he said to her as she sighed.

"What are you making Ari?" Leo's voice drifted into the kitchen again.

"You'll see but can you go and get Cody, I want him to see how I cook," she said to Leo.

"I'll be right back," he said in return and very shortly, Cody came walking into the kitchen as Casey was shooed out.

Cody watched as Arienne made dinner and answered his questions to the best of her ability. Leo watched from the doorway of the kitchen where he wouldn't be seen and he was half hidden in the shadows.

Casey was watching Leo, to see if the young mutant turtle was having any kind of emotions that was beside friendship and Casey slowly saw it. It was the way that Leo was leaning up against the doorframe that gave Casey the first clue. Leo had his arms folded across his chest and he was facing her completely. He knew that something will happen between the two, as stealthy as Leo can get, it will only be a matter of time before Arienne is thrusted into one of their enemies.

Very soon, a unique delicious smell drifted around the house as all of their stomachs were growling in protest.

"Leo, Casey! Dinner is ready!" She yelled to them.

"Cody, go wash your hands," she told him.

"But they're"

"Go wash your hands," she gently interrupted him knowingly.

"Yes…" he pouted and marched to the down stairs bathroom.

"Do you want us to wash our hands too?" Leo asked her.

"Yes, please," she answered him as she washed her hands at the kitchen sink.

"Why does she get to have the kitchen sink and us, men get the one cramped bathroom one?" Casey protested.

"Because, Stacey, she was the one who cooked everything," Leo teased him as he guided Casey down the hallway.

After Arienne had washed her hands and put the food on everyone's plates, she walked over to the fridge but something caught her eye. It was a picture that looked very familiar to her. Gently taking it off the fridge, she put it in her pants pocket for now and then opened it up to get the milk out.

When the boys came back after some bickering had gone between Casey and Cody they all very gently took their seats. Leo's plate was on the counter as he saw Ari's back was to him.

"Thank you, Ari for making dinner for us," he said to her gratefully.

"Whoa, yeah, thank you Arienne," Casey chimed in too.

"Thank you, Air," Cody told her as Arienne blushed.

"You're all welcome," she muttered low as everyone quickly dug in.

Leo watched her from his standpoint and watched how she kept her eyes on Cody. Even though she may be in her early twenties, she would make a wonderful mother, if and when that time came for her. Another emotion different then the warmth of this one soon over took his entire being. Could he actually see her with someone else? Someone that was human and not him by her side?

The discussion that he and Casey had while driving up here and getting the food, rang loudly within his ears.

"You're in love with her, Leo. Face it, dude. You love her to the point of putting your own life on the line to make sure she survives whatever it is from,"

"I do not love her in a romantic-"

"Yes you do, Leo. I saw the way you were acting when you saved her earlier from the Triceratons goons. You love this woman and you don't even know it,"

"But I like someone else,"

"Oh? Who? That ninja lady who helped us when the city was at war with one another? That ain't true love Leo. With uhm…Air, she's your true love,"

"Her name is Arienne. Like the name of Arian but differently spelled Casey. And what do you know about love? You never-!"

"Oh but I am Leo and from what I can see you love Arienne just as much as I love April. That ninja lady will only use you for whatever she wants and then leave without a care in the world. Like I said to you, that ain't true love. I will take care of …Arienne as much as possible but, you have got to face the facts sooner or later Leo,"

Leo looked down and wondered if he was falling in love with Ari and just lusting after Karai because she understood his upbringing better then Arienne did?

'But I am keeping a lot of secrets from her. Where Karai has seen what I look like.' He thought to himself as he softly sighed to himself.

His eyes drifted over to Arienne again who was not eating much. This got his attention as he wondered what she was thinking about to make her not eat?

"Aren't you going to have some more?" Cody asked her.

"Huh? Oh sorry Cody, I was just thinking about something," she told him as she slowly began to eat her dinner again.

"What were you thinking about?" Casey asked her glancing over to Leo who glared a warning to him.

"Just random stuff but it's nothing," she said back to him, calmly eating her dinner until she was full.

"One more bite, please?" Cody asked her as she chuckled softly at him.

"Okay, but this is the last one okay?" she told him and when he took her fork, he made sure that it was a big bite for her to eat.

She gently took her fork back, took the large amount of food into her mouth, and started to chew. Cody felt happy as he ate the rest of his dinner too.

Leo softly grinned at this scene and ate his dinner too.

After the guys cleaned up the kitchen and put away the leftovers, Arienne and Cody were softly playing cards again on the couch.

Leo sat on the stairs away from them. With his stomach full and his mind pondering over things, he felt sleepy after today.

"Casey do you have an extra car or something for me to drive?" Arienne asked him as she let Cody win again.

"Uhm…I think so. It's out in the back though," he replied trying to think of something as Leo rolled his eyes.

"Casey, you don't have anything in the barn. Not unless it's hidden under the old moldy straw in the horse stalls," Leo stated to him.

"Thanks a lot Leo," Casey growled at him.

Arienne shook her head at the two and when she saw that Cody was nearly falling asleep, she gently put the pack of cards on the coffee table and tenderly took the little boy into her arms.

He cuddled into her shoulder as his eyes were closed and she gently stood up. Leo had his eyes on her as she walked away from the couch and down the hallway that lead to the first floor bathroom. Here she and Cody found a huge master bedroom with a joining bedroom to it earlier.

"Goodnight, Cody," she whispered to him as she gently tucked him into bed after she got him changed out of his clothes from today.

"Ari," Leo whispered low to her to not wake up Cody.

She walked over to the dark doorframe and looked at him.

"I bought you these for bathing and such. I hope they're the right ones," he whispered to her as she saw the box full of shampoo, conditioners, body soap, a small sponge and other girly stuff.

"Thank you, you didn't have to"

"I know how much women love to keep clean and you mostly love taking showers more than baths," he interrupted her as he looked over at her bed.

She let him into the darkening bedroom as he gently put the box on the newly made bed.

"When this is over with, I will come back and get you," he vowed to her.

"I know you will but I have made my own promise, Leo. I have to find Cody's mother or his family and I am not going to break that promise to him," she told him as he turned around to look at her.

"If you need any help, just call me please," he whispered, leaving one of the shell cells behind on her bed.

"Be careful Leo. This may cause a lot of trouble and heartache throughout the world now that we know that we're no long alone," she whispered fearfully to him.

Stepping very carefully and close to her, the closet that he has ever been to while she was awake, he looked into her eyes.

"I will try my hardest to be careful Ari. Casey and April will stop by in a couple of days, just to see how you are doing. And like I said to you earlier, if you need anything, anything at all, just give me a call," he whispered softly to her.

"At times I really wish I could give you a hug, Leo," she stated low to him as he nodded to.

"I know how you feel. However, I have to get back to my family and see if they are alright. Take care of him while I'm away," he murmured to her about Cody.

"You know about a mother bear and her cub?" she asked him lightly.

Blushing and mumbled, "Yeah I know, nothing can get past her. Keep me in your thoughts Arienne,"

She was going to say something back but he was already out of the bedroom. She couldn't help the smile that formed on her face.

After she took her long awaited shower and got into her new PJ's that appeared out of nowhere on the bed, she was fast asleep before her head hit the pillow.

Leo stayed for a couple of hours before he and Casey headed back to New York City. Casey wouldn't say it on the drive back but Leo knew that slowly, ever so slowly he was falling in love with Arienne.

Fin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! It would be so kind of you to leave a review on what you thought of it. Thank you!
> 
> Alonia143.


	4. A Puck His Girl.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leonardo has been keeping Arienne Lyn a secret from his family and friends for a long time. She is never too far away from his heart or mind. When Casey Jones makes a huge fit over the “Golden Puck”, Leo needs some help from Ari and in doing so, let his secret be known by his family, friends and possibly his enemy. Just how will things go?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought that with the episode of “The Golden Puck”, that Leo’s secret of Arienne Lyn will be more “Announced”. And I know that the episode of “The Golden Puck” happened before the invasion but, I’m tweaking it to fit in this timeline of my one-shots.
> 
> I would say, the timeline will take place before or after Thanksgiving; hence the Snow on the ground in the episode. Also there will be a companion to this one-shot; A Christmas Wish. And it will be posted on Christmas ^_~. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and I do not make any money of this story.

**_A Puck his girl:_ **

 

Walking back to the lair, dragging his feet, one of the turtles brothers couldn’t get one person out of his thoughts.

 

“Come on Leo!” He heard Mikey from far ahead.

 

He picked up his pace but lagged behind once more.

 

“Alright Leo?” Donny asked him curiously, walking with his brother.

 

“Yeah,” He whispered low.

 

“Mmhm. I knew it didn’t have to do with the turkey and stuffing tonight,” Donny easily replied back.

 

_‘I just miss_ her _,’_ Leo thought to himself.

 

It had been a month since he last saw Arienne Lyn. Cody was now her son; Cody’s family was killed by the looters from the invasion. Leonardo felt horribly bad for Cody but, he really lucked out with Ari being his mother.

 

“Does it have to with Karai?” Donny lightly asked his leader.

 

“Huh? No. I’m over Karai, Donny. Just …thoughts,” Leo said back.

 

And it was true. Leonardo was over Karai; after Ari and everyone else told him how bad she truly was.

 

“Hey guys, you go on ahead!” Donny yelled to their other siblings.

 

“Alright! Meet you back at the lair!” Raph’s voice echoed back to them.

 

Leo sighed as he walked over to an open man hole and looked up.

 

“It’s that woman. From the Triceraton invasion. Ari was what you said of her name?” Donny guessed as Leo ignored him.

 

Leonardo had to ignore what his brother was asking. He had to protect Ari from everyone. He couldn’t let it slip that she was the one being who holds his heart and soul in the palm of her hands.

 

“It is okay, Leo,” Donatello said, knowing that he had hit the nail on the head with his oldest brother and leader.

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Don but, thank you just the same,” Leo deflected back.

 

Donny nodded and then said “I’m always here if you need to discuss anything. But come on, Master Splinter will be worried about us,”

 

With another sigh as Leonardo gazed up at the stars one last time that night, he followed his genius brother back to the lair.

 

When both brothers got back inside the lair, Raph was on the phone.

 

“Yeah. Yeah. Sure, just let me ask my bros,” Raph said to the person.

 

Leonardo wanted to go to bed; that turkey was making him sleepy.

 

“Hey guys, Casey wanted to know if we would like to go to a Slam Hockey game in a few days?” Raph asked them.

 

“Sure!” Mikey replied back.

 

“I wouldn’t mind to go,” Donny said yawning.

 

“It would be good to get out of the lair,” Leo finally replied when they looked at him.

 

Raph nodded and then said “Sure Case. We’ll see you then,”

 

“I’m going to bed,” Leo stated and walked to his room.

 

His brothers looked after him but, Donny had an inclining as to who was on their leader’s mind.

 

 

* * *

 

When it was the hockey game, Leonardo had crept out earlier in the day. There was snow and the temperature had dropped in the low 30’s.

 

He walked around in the trench coat sweat pants, scarf covering his face and hat within central park.

 

“Air! Air!” he heard a little boy say excitedly.

 

“Be careful Cody,” a sweet voice greeted his ears.

 

Walking hurriedly around the bend, Leonardo then saw them both.

 

“When will it be enough to have snow on the ground?” Cody asked her.

 

The child had grown a foot since Leo had last seen him; his dirty blonde hair was a bit brighter but his child blue eyes were the same. The young woman that was with him didn’t change at all.

 

“Ari,” Leo whispered low.

 

Her hair was longer than normal; still dark brown and curly. It was her eyes; her warm brown eyes, which either made Leo’s heart stop or skip a beat. She was wearing thick winter blue pants, black mountain boots, a blue scarf, a winter blue beanie and black gloves.

“That guy keeps looking at us,” Cody whispered low to her.

 

Arienne looked up and saw the trench coat guy wearing a hat.

 

“Hm…” she hummed and then walked over to him.

 

Leonardo panicked.

 

“Leo?” she asked him curiously.

 

“Y-yes,” he stammered in a high squeaky voice.

 

“What….what are you doing here?” she stumbled with her words now.

 

“I…I needed some Air,” he replied back.

 

Cody walked up to his mother and looked up at Leo.

 

“Hi,” Leo greeted him.

 

“Come on, let’s go get something warm to drink,” Ari told them both.

 

“Okay,” they both said and followed after her.

 

They all walked into a small café across the street from the park. Seating in the way back corner, Leo gazed at Ari.

 

“How…how are you?” he asked her after she had paid for his drink.

 

“I’m doing really well. Cody is in school now, getting good grades but, could do without the fighting,” Ari said, looking at her son.

 

Cody ignored her on this. She knew that it was hard for him to get along with the other students.

 

“Mm. I know that other children can be very mean when they want to. Just try to ignore it Cody and keep doing your school work,” Leo told him.

 

“Where have you been since you left us at that farm house?” Cody asked to change the subject.

 

Leo looked down and whispered low “Saving the world. Trying to keep it safe for you two,”

 

Arienne gently placed her gloved hand over his.

 

“Thank you. After you left, Cody and I were hesitant to come back to New York City. I no longer work at the museum anymore. I actually am a stay at home mom,” Ari said lowly.

 

“Why are you ashamed of being a stay at home mother?” Leo asked, looking into her eyes.

 

“Because many people look down upon it and my uh…my money comes from my dad,” she whispered low.

 

Leonardo thought on this.

 

“I don’t think that’s bad Arienne. Just that your father has finally stepped up or-”

 

“Set up a system that whenever I had any children of my own, that my trust fund would kick in,” she interrupted in a low whisper.

 

Cody gently hugged her. He knew what went on in their house more so then Leonardo.

 

“I am sorry,” Leonardo told her.

 

“It’s alright. I just didn’t expect my father to be like this,” she said, drinking her apple cider.

 

“I’m surprised that you are out in the open,” Cody then told Leonardo.

 

Swallowing nervously, Leo looked down.

 

“I am curious, what are you doing out in the open?” Ari softly asked him.

 

“I am going to a slam hockey game tonight. With my brothers and friend, Casey,” Leo replied back “And I needed some alone time,”

 

Ari smiled and then said “We’re going to that tonight as well,”

 

Cody gasped and looked at her.

 

“You got 4 A’s in the last 3 weeks. I do believe that deserve a reward,” she told him, winking.

 

“Thank you! Thank you!” He said excitedly, hugging her.

 

“That is awesome, Cody,” Leo told him, smiling behind his scarf.

 

“Do you know where you will be seated?” Ari asked Leo.

 

“No. But knowing Casey, probably not that good of seats,” he replied, knowing his friend.

 

“Hm. Well I hope that you get to wear that blue scarf of yours. So that I know where to find you,” she said, smiling.

 

Leo’s heart fluttered hard as his stomach was doing flips. Or was it his heart doing flips and his stomach fluttering hard? He couldn’t tell.

 

“All…all right. I’ll uh…I’ll wear this scarf to the…the uh…game,” he stammered more.

 

Cody giggled, knowing that Leonardo liked his mother.

 

Ari got up and then walked over to the cashier as an idea struck her.

 

“What is she doing now?” Cody whined.

 

“She does this a lot?” Leo asked him curiously.

 

“Only those that she deems worthy. Which, by the way, don’t you dare hurt my mother,” Cody declared to Leo.

 

“I would never hurt her, Cody. She means everything to me,” Leo replied back to the glaring little boy.

 

He nodded with “Good, you better not hurt her,”

 

Leo smiled at the protective little boy.

 

When Ari came back, she had a triple brown paper bags.

 

“What is that Ari?” Leo asked her.

 

“Since we missed Thanksgiving, I thought that this might make it up for it,” she told him, handing the bags to him.

 

Leo gently took the handles and looked inside of it. There, just enough for 40 people, were the fixings of Thanksgiving with 4 bottles of apple cider and eggnog.

 

“You didn’t-”

 

“I wanted to and like I said, we missed Thanksgiving together, Leo,” she interrupted him, gently resting her hand on top of his.

 

Gently putting the bags on the chair, Leonardo got up, walked over to her, had her stand up and then wrapped his arms around her. For the longest time, he feared that she would push him away, that was what made him so hesitant on hugging her, but boy did he miss actually hugging her.

 

She wrapped her arms around his plastron, snuggling into his neck and the both of them stayed like that for some time. It was a huge relief for Leo that she wasn’t running away, screaming.

 

Cody glared at a couple of costumers who were giving his mother and Leo a dirty look.

 

“Don’t stay away from me too long,” Ari whispered low.

 

“I’ll try my best, Ari,” Leo whispered back.

 

She nodded and held him for a bit more before letting go. He looked at her and smiled; though she couldn’t see it thanks to the scarf.

 

“Come along Cody, we have to go,” she announced to Cody.

 

“Go? Go where? Mom, if I have to get another haircut!” Cody began to protest inertest.

 

She laughed and said “Yes, another hair cut appointment for you,”

 

Cody then clung onto Leo with “No! I don’t like the-”

 

“It won’t be that bad, Cody. Besides hair grows back. It’ll be alright,” Leo interrupted the frightened boy, gently rubbing his back.

 

Cody heavily sighed with “Fine. This time you win….but not the one after this,”

 

Ari chuckled and then waited for Leo to get his things. He did and walked in front of them.

 

“See you tonight?” she asked to make sure that he was coming.

 

“Yes. See you tonight,” he said smiling more.

 

Ari and Cody walked away as Leo walked back into the park. He couldn’t believe that Arienne Lyn didn’t run away terrified and screaming.

 

Making sure that no one was around, he lifted up a manhole cover and hopped down. He put the manhole cover back in place and grabbed his stuff.

 

Upon returning to the lair, his brothers and father looked at him.

 

“Where have you been Leonardo?” Master Splinter asked him.

 

“Out and uh…the homeless people gave me these for what we do to help them. They really shouldn’t have but, I couldn’t ….uh…say no to them,” Leo lied.

 

Master Splinter walked over into the kitchen as Leo had put the bags, looking inside.

 

“No, they really shouldn’t have given us this. However, it was the right thing to do. Now we won’t go hungry for a couple of weeks,” Master Splinter said, knowing exactly where this came from.

 

Raph, Donny and Mikey came over and looked at the food too.

 

“Whoa! They even gave us apple cider and eggnog!” Mikey exclaimed in shock and happiness.

 

“Those are from”

 

“Angel’s grandmother and Casey told me that none of us except Leonardo, to have them,” Donny stepped in, knowing where this was going.

 

“What!?” Mikey shrieked.

 

“How come Leo gets that and the eggnog, while we get the food?” Raph snarled, not liking this either.

 

“Because, Leo and I helped Angel’s grandmother from a theft. Remember? A grandmother was robbed but somehow got her purse and TV back?” Donny supplied the somewhat lie to them.

 

“Oh! About 2 months ago! The news aired it….and….Oh…Right. Well Alright,” Mikey joined in, thought on it and then realized that his brothers weren’t lying.

 

Raph huffed and said “I just want one-”

 

“Raph!” Leo snapped at him “No!”

 

“What? Come on Leo! You are not going to run out on this!” Raph argued back.

 

“Raphael, leave your brother’s rewards alone. Michelangelo you as well,” Master Splinter ended the argument.

 

“What? Awe man, Master Splinter,” Mikey complained.

 

Leonardo took the apple cider and eggnog up to his bedroom and put them in his mini fridge; locking it with a padlock.

 

Donatello followed his oldest brother and closed the door.

 

“You saw her. Arienne Lyn, I mean,” Donny said flat out.

 

“Yes. She gave me that stuff for we missed Thanksgiving yesterday. She bought me the cider and eggnog. Donny, what am I to do?” Leo asked, confused on this, sitting on his bed.

 

Donny walked over to the chair and sat down on it.

 

“I’ve never been in love, Leo but from what I have been seeing, you already are in love with her. Or have been for some time,” he told him.

 

Leo grounded his teeth and said low “I know,”

 

“I take it Casey already had this conversation with you?” Donny asked him.

 

“Yes, on the way up to his farm house, when the invasion happened. I have been thinking on this for some time and every time that someone says that I am in love with her, I want to rebel. I can’t have her being known to our enemies Don. Karai nearly came close. I can’t see my world without her in it,” Leo explained to him.

 

Donatello sighed heavily and said “I knew something was wrong when Karai had said something to you. You acted on pure anger alone. Nearly got Master Splinter seriously hurt, but I knew something else was lingering. Maybe you can tell me what you see in Arienne Lyn?”

 

“Her Loving spirit. Donny, it’s….She is just beautiful,” Leo said, lying back on his bed. “How she is always patient with people, let alone times with herself, but still. You know how I train in the dojo? And April was in awe of how we were with our training? Ari is like that but whenever she makes food,”

 

Donny couldn’t hide the grin at how Leo had turned to goo when he was talking about Ari.

 

“And today! Just some time ago, she hugged me. Not running away, screaming. She hugged me, Don,” Leo gushed some more.

 

“She did? Does she know of us?” he asked a bit alarmed.

 

“Yes, she does. Donny, I’m also going to be seeing her tonight, at the hockey puck game,” Leo informed him, looking up at his brother.

 

“What!? Leo, you can’t…..she already agreed to it, didn’t she?” Donny began but stopped.

 

“She did,” Leo said as they heard the phone ringing downstairs.

 

A few minutes later Raph came up and said excitedly “Guys! Guys! We got better seats! Casey won a raffle ticket game and said that even though we were going to the game tonight, the owner of the teams told Casey that he would exchange the tickets for better ones! Can you believe that!?”

 

Leonardo sat up from his bed, shocked.

 

A hand was quickly put over his mouth as Donny said “That is awesome Raph!”

 

“Also Casey said that he would bring some clothes over for us that way no one will know what we look like. Where is Mikey! MIKEY!!” Raph said excitedly and took off running.

 

Donny looked over at Leo and said “I’m guessing the clothes and the new seats came from Arienne?”

 

Moving his hand from his mouth, Leo then replied “Yes. I knew that they both were faking it,”

 

“They?” Donny asked.

 

“Oh, Cody and Ari. Cody’s parents were killed by looters in the invasion and since Cody was around Ari so much, she adopted him,” Leo explained that sad part.

 

Donny nodded and then said “That is good for her to do that,”

 

Leo smiled softly to himself.

 

“If you need someone to talk, just to get this off of your chest, Leo. I am always here to listen. I may not have the greatest advice but”

 

“But I appreciate it non-the-less Donny. Thank you,” Leo finished as the doors opened downstairs.

 

 

* * *

 

Leonardo couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It was a full stadium and right across from arena was Ari and Cody.

 

They were having a grand time with the game.

 

“Ari,” Leo whispered low with Donny right next to him.

 

Donny looked up and over to where Arienne and Cody were sitting. He saw how beautiful she looked and honestly knew why Leo had fallen in love with her.

 

She was loving, caring, always taking care of Cody whenever he needed something and was openly flirting with Leo.

 

“It’s okay Leo,” Donny whispered to him.

 

When the game was over and the post game air show began, Leo was looking directly at Ari.

 

“ARI, CODY! RUN!!!” He yelled at them.

 

“Great! Just blow your secret!” Donny hissed more to himself about his oldest brother.

 

But it did the trick, Ari and Cody were running away to safety. When the bomb blew up, Leo last saw them stopping in the stair way. Casey pulled them out but when Leo saw Ari standing there, helping, Leo bolted over to her.

 

“Are you alright? Ari, where is Cody?” Leo asked, looking around.

 

“I’m right here,” Cody said, sitting down on the bench.

 

“Leo, what the shell is going on!” Raph snarled, glaring at the woman before them.

 

“Raph,” Don warned him, putting his Bo staff on his shoulder to keep him back.

 

Leo looked Ari over, ignoring his brothers as Ari gently took Leo’s shoulders and pinned them to his sides.

 

“I’m alright. I’m fine. Cody is fine too. Leo, please calm down,” Ari calmly said to him.

 

Taking deep breathes, he then wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

 

“Too close…just too close…” He whispered, closing his eyes tightly.

 

Ari hugged him back, softly running her hands up and down his back. Raphael and Mikey however were confused and angry.

 

“Who the shell are you?” Raph snapped at her, bringing out his Sais.

 

“I’m Arienne Lyn,” she replied to him.

 

Leo pulled away and drew his katanas out.

 

“ _Ooh_ you just _had_ to go _there_ Raph,” Donny sarcastically said, putting his hand over his eyes.

 

Ari then did something that made Raphael get the picture: she moved closer to Leo and rested her chin on his shoulder with her arms wrapped around his back.

 

“Whoa..” Casey said, knowing that gesture.

 

Leo looked over at her, confused but Ari continued to stare Raphael down.

 

Cody smiled and said “Way to go mom!”

 

Raph twirled his Sais around before putting them in his belt.

 

“So you’re the one who gave us that food?” he asked for confirmation.

 

“Yes. Did you like it?” she asked back.

 

“We are still eating it,” Mikey supplied.

 

Raph smacked his face and replied “Yes it is good, thank you,”

 

“AAH! The Hockey puck trophy!!” Casey said in alarmed.

 

“It’s okay Casey,” Leo said “It’s just a trophy,”

 

“Just a _trophy_! _Just_ a _trophy_! It’s not _just a trophy_!!” Casey wailed.

 

“They will help you get it back,” Ari stated quickly.

 

“We will!?” the brothers asked.

 

“Yes, you will,” She told them.

 

Leo sighed heavily and then walked her away from his brothers.

 

“I don’t want you with us. It could be dangerous. You saw what they did to the stadium; blowing our seats up because we didn’t move. I want you and Cody home. My brothers and I, with Casey, will get the trophy back,” Leo told her in a tight voice.

 

“But, I want to come-!”

 

“He’s right, Cody. We would just be an easy target and in the way. Later on tonight, stop by,” Ari cut in on Cody’s ranting.

 

Leo whispered low “Call the police the minute we leave,”

 

Ari nodded and hugged Leo tightly to her.

 

He hugged her back, whispering “Please be safe when you get home,”

 

“You as well,” she whispered back, softly kissing his forehead.

 

Donny, Raph and Mikey were far away from them but, they all couldn’t help that their oldest brother had a lot of explaining to do when this was over.

 

Casey had already ran out of the stadium.

 

The brothers quickly took the ski mobiles and jumped over the walls.

 

Ari had Cody dial 9-1-1 for help.

 

 

* * *

 

When this was over, Leo had sneaked away and ran towards Ari’s home. He looked and saw that she was pacing around.

 

He jumped through the library window and shut it. He walked down the hallway and listened.

 

No one was up but Ari.

 

“Ari?” He asked, staying in the shadows again.

 

She turned around and saw the white glowing eyes.

 

“Leo?” she asked back.

 

“I’m alright. So are my brothers and Casey. Where is Cody?” he replied back, not coming out of the shadows.

 

“In bed. He was jumping all over the place when we got home and the police men said that they were going to be running a story on how Casey and Cody got the bad guys,” she told him, worrying her lower lip.

 

“That isn’t good,” Leo agreed with her, walking over to her couch and sitting down.

 

“No. So they told me, that they would keep Cody’s and my name out of it,” she continued more.

 

“They were too close to your home tonight,” Leo growled low.

 

“I didn’t know that they were,” she told him, walking over and sitting beside him.

 

Scooting away from her, Leo felt horrible. He didn’t want to scoot away, he wanted her in his arms once more.

 

“I have to explain to my family more so on us. I think my father knows,” Leo said, resting against the cushions.

 

Ari did the same and replied “Would it help if he and I met? Or talked over the phone?”

 

“Talking over the phone wouldn’t be a bad idea,” He agreed to that.

 

“When the seats had blown up, I honestly thought that I had lost you. I love you Leo,” she whispered low.

 

Leo looked over at her and whispered back “I know that one day that I will not be here, but I will do all that I can to be here in the present. I never said this to anyone except my father. I love you too Ari,”

 

Ari smiled in the dark in his direction.

 

He leaned over and very softly, pressed his lips on her soft cheek. He knew that he couldn’t kiss her fully on the lips yet. Their relationship was slow and at their own pace.

 

“I have to go now. I am sorry but my father will worry,” he stated, not wanting to leave just yet.

 

Ari got up, walked over to her book shelf and pulled out a photo album. She took out the newest picture of her and Cody at the Museum of natural history.

 

“Here, take this and you can keep it,” she told Leo, turning around.

 

“But…what about you?” he asked, still sitting on the couch.

 

“I checked for copies,” She said, gently writing on the back of it with a pen.

 

Ari handed the picture over and smiled at him as he stood up.

 

Leo took it and saw that she and Cody were in front of some extinct turtles. It jogged something in his memory but, he didn’t say it out loud.

 

“Thank you, Ari,” He told her, looking up at her eyes.

 

Oh how he could easily swim in those warm honey flecks, the deep warm browns and sharp elegant green of her eyes.

 

“You’re welcome. Just please stop by before another month or so goes by?” she teased him as he put the picture in his belt.

 

He laughed softly and replied “I’ll mark it on my calendar,”

 

She laughed with him as Leo got up and walked down the hallway.

 

It was when Leonardo got home that Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello were standing there with Master Splinter looking not pleased.

 

“Uh…” Leo had said unsure of what to do.

 

“I’m sorry, Leo. You know how Master Splinter can get,” Donny said to him in shame.

 

“It’s alright Donny. It is about time that all of you know who my girlfriend is,” Leo replied back.

 

And so, Leonardo explained to his family that Arienne Lyn was his girlfriend. How they met, how he had taken her to safety when the invasion happened, with her adopting Cody and showing the picture that she had given him earlier.

 

“I knew something was going on,” Mikey said to him.

 

“You guys aren’t upset with me?” Leo asked, looking at Raph.

 

“Why would I be upset, when it explains nearly everything that you have gone through?” Raph stated back.

 

“I was that-”

 

“No, but something was off,” Mikey agreed.

 

“Oh,” Leo said, looking down.

 

Master Splinter walked over and said “Remember my son, you two share a bond of love. There will be times where you will have to give, take and come in the middle,”

 

Leonardo listened and then asked “Even if what you fear the most of that person you love leaves you for what you look like Master Splinter?”

 

“Even if, Leonardo. It is going to take a trust that only you will have to jump for. It will be scary, but I know you will come to a decision on it,” Master Splinter replied, handing the picture back to his oldest son.

 

Leo gently took it and looked at the young woman in the picture.

 

“I’ve come too far,” he said a loud.

 

“Leo, remember you built the trust between you and Arienne Lyn. By now she wouldn’t run away. She has fallen in love with you yourself, not what you look like,” Donny helped out too.

 

Nodding, Leo then said “Thank you, all of you for understanding and accepting this,”

 

“Just wish you told us sooner bro,” Raph said, going to the dojo to train.

 

“Yeah, but I can’t wait to see them,” Mikey chimed in too.

 

“That will be another big step for Leonardo to take on his own, Michelangelo,” Master Splinter said to him.

 

Leonardo went up to his bedroom and there on his nightstand, was an empty picture frame. He didn’t have to know who did that, but he put his picture of Ari and Cody in it.

 

“One day, Ari. One day,” he said to no one.

 

**Fin.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! It would be so kind of you to leave a review on what you thought of it. Thank you!
> 
> Alonia143.


	5. Chapter 5.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Note:  
> Hello everyone!
> 
> I hope you guys like this; companion with “A puck his girl!” 
> 
> Another thing that I would like to point out is that the Series never really did flush out Ruffington. True he is a smuggler and works on weapons but what else? How did he get so rich? These questions have got me curious so this is my own spin on his character and how Ari’s family is connected to Ruffington and possibly to Nobody.
> 
> I also raised the rating of this fanfic series to Rated: MATURE. It’s not for sexual situations between Ari and Leo but, for the battle that Leo and them, between Ruffington.
> 
> Please read and review, thank you!  
> Alonia143.

**_ A Christmas Wish. _ **

 

**_ Summary: _ **

**_It’s December. It’s nearly Christmas! But what Ari wants more than anything is not expensive items or fancy clothes. What she truly wants is to see Leonardo in the light. Will Arienne Lyn get her Christmas Wish?_ **

 

**_A Christmas Wish:_ **

 

He kept pacing around in his bedroom. He didn’t like not knowing what he could get for her, but he knew that he had to think of something.

 

Glancing at the picture frame on his nightstand, Leo sighed. The girl in the picture was that of his girlfriend.

 

He got a lot of teasing from Raph, Mikey and respectfully from Donny. Master Splinter would just smile on telling his other sons to leave their oldest brother alone on his love life.

 

It was very strange for Leo to call Ari his girlfriend because he didn’t see her like that. He saw her as his best friend first. The love part was something that he was still trying to figure out on where that born from.

 

Leonardo had gotten Ari a lot of dark chocolate, flowers of all kinds and rarely went on a date with her. The only reason why he couldn’t take her out on proper dates was because he couldn’t show himself.

 

It has had worked for a couple of reasons but now, it’s starting to become a problem. Starting to drive a wedge between the two of them. A lot of bickering and some arguments but making up awkwardly the next night.

 

“Uhg!” he gruffed, lying on his bed.

 

“You okay, Leo?” Donny asked from his bedroom door.

 

“You can come in Donny. Though, maybe you can help me with this?” Leo replied back, sitting up and sighing.

 

Donny walked in and saw that his oldest brother had the weight of the world on his hunched shoulders.

 

“What’s wrong?” He asked him again, sitting next to him on his bed.

 

“It has to do with my relationship with Arienne and well…She and I have been arguing on me showing myself to her. Also I don’t know what to get her for Christmas, since it’s just a couple of weeks away,” Leo explained a bit.

 

Donny thought on this for a good couple of minutes and then said to him “Hm...Well from what I can see, Leo, is to show what you really look like to her. For close to a year now, you two have been well together from the very start. And if you need some help, I can help you along,”

 

“You would Donny?” Leo asked in shocked.

 

“Yes. She’s going to be around you a lot and should get to know what we all look like. Besides how will Cody take to us being who we are when he’s an adult?” Donny stated back, smiling.

 

“Cody? What?” Leo asked confusedly.

 

Donny just pointed to the smaller picture frame that had Cody’s name on it.

 

“Oh. Well…uh…I don’t know,” Leo replied, trying to make sense of all of this.

 

“Might as well get him use to us before adulthood. Besides, _Papa_ Leo, he is your son,” Donny teased him.

 

Suddenly it hit Leonardo like a ton of bricks.

 

“I am a Father!” he said loudly, jumping up and freaking out.

 

“Leo. Leo!” Donny tried to calm his oldest brother down.

 

Leo wasn’t hearing him; he was nearly going into a panic attack.

 

WHACK!

 

“Ah! Don, that hurt,” Leo complained, rubbing his forehead.

 

“Sorry, but, you were freaking out. And it worked. Now, we’ve all had time to think this over. Master Splinter is nearly tickled pink that he’s a grandfather. Why else do you think he’s so gentle with you and Ari?” Donny replied back.

 

“I guess so. It’s just that I never saw it that way, just …I want to be with Ari like …well like Casey and April,” Leo expressed stressfully.

 

Donny chuckled and then said “For you two to get to that point, is maybe to give Arienne what she has been asking for? To show yourself to her?”

 

“And what if she doesn’t like what she sees, Don? You know how the groups of people across the nation are joining up against the “aliens” in New York City. Didn’t H.A.T.E. teach any of us that?”

 

“One, Arienne has been with you before the Triceratons invaded earth that they were looking for Professor Honeycut. Two, she has been asking this from you for how long now? A couple of weeks?”

 

“Months really. Well before we became a couple. She’s really curious when it comes to me or my family and friends,”

 

“Well, there you go. If she has been asking for this, then I would say that is killing two birds with one stone. Her Christmas gift and revealing how you really look. Also like I said before, I’ll be there if you need me,” Donny told him, smiling.

 

Heavily sighing Leonardo nodded.

 

“Just, where are you planning to do this?” Donatello asked him curiously.

 

“That I don’t know. She really liked Casey’s farm house,” Leo replied back thinking it over.

 

“Well, that wouldn’t be a bad place to start,” Donny encourage his brother.

 

“Alright, I need to go out to April’s anyway,” Leonardo said, having that thoughtful look to him.

 

Don nodded as he got up and left his oldest brother alone.

 

Leonardo grabbed his shell cell and headed out of the lair.

 

 

* * *

 

When Leo had walked into April’s apartment and stayed standing, he saw her walked up the spiral staircase.

 

“Hello Leo. It’s a surprise to see you,” April greeted him, hugging him when she was in reach.

 

He returned the hug and replied “Yeah. I uh…I need your help with something. It’s…uh…well… it’s a present for my…uh…my son,”

 

“What?” she asked him, cleaned out her ears with her fingers and looked at him again.

 

It was so weird for Leo to have said that Cody was his son.

 

“My girlfriend adopted a kid when the Triceratons invaded Earth looking for Professor Honeycut. The boy’s parents were killed by looters. I just wanted to get him something about Japan?” Leo explained, looking at the floor.

 

April smiled and then said “I’m very happy for you, Leo. And I have a lot of books and such from or about Japan. Let me go downstairs and get the box, okay?”

 

Leonardo waited as April went back downstairs to get the stuff. He would have gone with her, but the people of New York City were starting to put two and two together that he was from the Triceraton invasion.

 

April came back up with two boxes instead of one.

 

“Here you are,” she said after he took the first one from her.

 

“Thank you April. I uh…I hope that one day I can repay you,” he told her, gently walking over to the dining table and looking through the box.

 

“Don’t worry about it, Leo. Besides maybe I can help you out with whatever you have planned?” she asked him with a smile.

 

“Well uh…what do you have in mind April?” Leo replied, not sure where this was going.

 

April put the other box next to the other one and dug into them both. Leo stepped back and out of the way.

 

 

* * *

 

The frost that made the ground crunch under her feet, all of the branches were bare of leaves, the temperatures dropping from scorching 80’s and 90’s to nearly down to where snow could appear at any given storm system. And the hours of the sun were shortening.

 

Walking down the drive way to the main road, Arienne was bundled up as the cold of winter was vastly approaching.

 

Every afternoon, she would wait for Cody to get home from school. He had transferred into a private schooling since Ari’s father had harassed her to do it. She only caved in because she wanted him to stop bullying her and Cody.

 

The fighting between Cody and his classmates were still there, but less when Cody had come home with a black eye and Ari’s father was visiting at the time. Let’s just say that he was not “OK” with it.

 

Sitting on the boulder where their mail box was, Ari waited patiently.

 

In her pocket, she pulled out an old picture. It was the only picture of Leonardo and his brothers. She had taken it from the farm house back when she and Cody were safe from the invasion of New York City from those aliens. And it was the first time that she and Cody were getting to know one another.

 

Looking at the person with the blue mask, Ari heavily sighed. She hasn’t heard from Leo in a couple of days. She knew it was normal for him but, she missed him so much.

 

Ari heard the diesel sound of the school bus heading down the road. Quickly putting her picture away, she saw the bus driver slowly crawl to a stop and then open the doors outward.

 

Cody walked down the steps and walked past her.

 

“Cody,” she said, waving to the bus driver as it rolled on by.

 

“Leave me alone,” he muttered back.

 

Ari walked after her son and kept in step with him. She knew that something had happened today.

 

“Who is Carl, Air?” Cody asked, stopping at once.

 

Ari replied back “I don’t know who he is. Why do you ask?”

 

“Because he said that he knew you and uh…our family,” Cody said.

 

She got her son into the house first and then asked him “What did he look like and did you get his full name?”

 

“I did. Carl P. Ruffington. He looked like …well like one of those rich financers, dirty blonde hair style from the 90’s and had black framed glasses with gray or black eyes. He also wore a vest over a work shirt, but the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and office slacks. He said that he would be dropping by,” Cody explained more to her.

 

Not liking the sound of this, Ari knew she had to contact Leo at once.

 

In a very old memory, Arienne knew who Ruffington was. He always came over to her parent’s house; never knowing why he did but always gave her gifts and toys.

 

SMASH!

 

“AH!” Cody yelled out of fright as Ari pulled them into the half bathroom.

 

Windows in the front of the house were broken in. Ari had opened the half bathroom window there and pushed Cody and his backpack through it.

 

WHAM!

 

“Cody, run!” Arienne told him fearfully.

 

“No! I’m staying!” He said back.

 

“I need you to get in contact with Leo,” she whispered low handing to him the shell cell and the old picture, as strangers within black outfits and black ski masks over their faces started to walk into the home.

 

Cody nodded as he took the shell cell and then was handed the picture from Air.

 

“He’s the one in the blue mask. Go to the Antique shop that has April O’Neil or Casey Jones. I will find you, I promise that I will. I love you, always,” she told him, urging him away from the house, with a zipped lock bag full of cash.

 

Cody didn’t like leaving his mother behind, he never did. He ran away from the house as his mother screamed from being tasered unconscious inside.

 

 

* * *

 

“Oh whoa, these are like brand new books,” Leo had said, looking into the box of stuff that April had brought up.

 

“Yeah, someone just left them at our door step and I couldn’t quite place them anywhere in the shop. I collect antiques, not modern stuff,” April told him.

 

From the corner of her eye she saw Leo flinched.

 

“Leo?” She asked him curiously.

 

The sharp pain that passed through his body was on his right side. He doubled over his stomach and knelt on the ground.

 

And just as suddenly it had appeared, it was gone.

 

“Ari,” He whispered, knowing that only his girlfriend could get that from him.

 

The dragon within Leo and his brothers never fully “disappeared”. It lay “dormant” and only awoken accordingly to each turtle brother.

 

Ring-Ring! Ring-Ring!

 

Leo took out his shell cell and answered “Hello?”

 

“LEO! LEO!” Cody’s frightened voice greeted him.

 

“Cody, what…where’s Ari?” he asked him, standing up.

 

“They got Air! They got Air!” Cody told him.

 

“Who’s got Arienne, Cody? And where are you?” Leo asked of him.

 

“I’m heading to the antique shop. Air told me to go there. Leo, you have to get my mother back!” Cody replied, desperate.

 

“Okay, I’m already at the shop. Just go up the metal spiral stair case. Deep breathes for me OK? You are safe,” Leo instructed him.

 

Walking over to the window, he saw a cab pull up.

 

“April, can you go downstairs and pay for the cab fare please?” Leo asked of her.

 

She nodded and hurriedly downstairs as frantic small footsteps came up.

 

Leo was flattened on his back as he saw the quivering body of Cody.

 

“Cody!” he exclaimed, wrapping his arm around the terrified little boy.

 

“They got her! They got Air, Leo!” he said, snuggling into the plastron plates.

 

“Easy. Deep breathes. You’re alright now. I’m here,” Leo soothingly told him, rubbing his back.

 

Cody looked up into his face and Leo tried not to let it get to him. However his major fear had finally come true: Ari was in fatal danger because of him. April came back up and looked at the two.

 

“Who’s got Arienne?” she asked Cody.

 

“Carl P. Ruffington,” he replied, getting up and off of Leo.

 

Leo gasped and said “Ruffington!”

 

“Yeah, he stopped me before I could get onto the bus. I almost missed it at my new school,” Cody told him.

 

Leo stood and then pulled out his shell cell.

 

“Mikey, call Nobody and the Justice Force. Ruffington _has_ Ari and Cody just escaped Ruffington getting him. We’re at April’s, come stat,” Leo ordered his youngest brother and hung up.

 

Cody pulled out the picture and looked at it, looked at Leo and then looked at the picture again.

 

“Where did you get that Cody?” Leo asked him.

 

“Air has had it since we were at that farm house. She gave it for me to know what you look like, so I could easily find you,” Cody explained, handing it to Leo.

 

“You’re not afraid of what I am?” Leonardo asked him, finally giving into his worry.

 

“Why should I? You’re not a bad guy, Leo,” Cody honestly told him back.

 

“But I’m a mutated-”

 

“Doesn’t matter to us,” Cody interrupted him, smiling.

 

“Us? You mean, Ari doesn’t care either?” Leo asked him curiously.

 

Cody was about reply when he saw other mutated turtles and the Justice Force all come up into the apartment.

 

Casey walked over and asked “Who’s got Ari, Leo?”

 

“I told you, Ruffington does!” Mikey argued to him.

 

“Ruffington!” Nobody snarled.

 

“I don’t know how she got into his snarls, but, Nobody, I am getting my girlfriend back,” Leo vowed.

 

“What is her last name?” Nobody asked him curiously.

 

“Arienne Lynn,” Leo gave to him.

 

Nobody gasped and knelt on his right knee.

 

“Nobody?” Donny asked.

 

“She was just a little girl when her father took out a loan. A loan that he couldn’t pay off. Not without a hard sacrifice to show him who was in charge of the stock markets,” Nobody explained to them all.

 

“You knew Ari when she was a child?” Leo asked him, wanting the full story.

 

“Yes I did. She was always giving me daisies whenever I did my patrol in her neighborhood and when the neighbors would call in, because her father would be arguing loudly with her worried mother. Always smiling and laughing and being a kid,” Nobody explained further.

 

“What did her father do to owe so much?” Donny asked him.

 

“Close to what today’s money would be: a Billion and half dollars. Ruffington is a cruel and sly villain. He always had them stay at around 25,000 dollars in the bank’s checking. I know this because it was then that Miss Lynn’s father came to me. Stating how some things didn’t add up and what he had done for Ruffington. It was my start on Ruffington’s trail and my career at an end as a cop,” Nobody explained more and more.

 

“I don’t care!” Cody snapped at him “I want my mother back! _NOW_!”

 

Raph walked over to him and said “You will get her back, Cody. No one goes after our family and gets away with it,”

 

Leo knelt and told his son “I will bring her back home, Cody. I promise,”

 

“You _better_ , Leonardo. She loves you,” Cody said back, stubbornly.

 

Leo sighed and nodded.

 

“So, how do we go about rescuing your girlfriend, Leonardo?” Silver Sentry asked him.

 

“I don’t know where they are keeping her. Cody do you?” Leo said, looking at him.

 

“Warehouse 71, downtown area, close to the docks,” Cody replied after he closed his eyes and thought on it.

 

“How do you know that?” Casey asked him curiously.

 

“Ruffington was on his cell phone before I got on the bus. He didn’t sound happy,” Cody replied, looking at the purple masked turtle, which was on the computer.

 

“I found her location, Leo,” Donny said after several minutes of searching.

 

“I need half of you to watch Cody,” Leo informed them.

 

“What! No!” Cody protested.

 

Kneeling down once more, Leo then stated “IF you go with us, they can and will use you as bate. Ari and I don’t want you hurt or worse, killed because they wanted to use you as leverage over something that happened years ago. If that happened, the guilt would eat at us both, but mostly with Ari, Cody. You have to stay here and be strong for her,”

 

“Besides, her knowing that you are safe and sound, brings her some kind of peace of mind,” Raph chimed in too.

 

Cody glared at the ground and said “I can help too,”

 

“We know you can Cody,” Nobody then spoke up, kneeling to the little boy “But, like Leo has told you: Ruffington plays dirty. The safest place is here, where I know that waiting will not be kind but, it is for the best,”

 

“After this, the Justice Force can make you a member of our team,” Silver Sentry said, smiling.

 

“I will stay with you Cody,” Nanobot spoke up.

 

“Why?” Cody snapped.

 

“Because I too was in your place. However, I am made out of nanos and I acted like a kid, wanting a family. Leonardo and his brothers, helped me,” Nanobot replied calmly back.

 

Cody nodded, still not giving up.

 

“April, Casey, Nanobot, Michelangelo and Raphael, you guys stay here,” Leonardo ordered them. “Nobody, Silver Sentry, Donatello, Tsunami, Chrysalis and I will go to the warehouse and rescue Ari,”

 

“But Leo!” Mike protested now.

 

“Michelangelo, I don’t have _time_ for _this_. You, stay here, with my son,” Leo snapped back. “I am trusting you to protect him with your life, if plan A doesn’t work out,”

 

A heavy silence fell in the room as Leo swallowed nervously.

 

Cody looked at Leo.

 

“Don’t worry, Leo, we got Plan B covered,” Raph affirmed it with a glare at Mikey.

 

Cody walked over to Leo and asked softly “You really see me as your son, Leo?”

 

“Of course I do. My father, Master Splinter, no matter how much he is a mutated rat, he is still my father. And he adopted me and my brothers,” Leo explained, getting to Cody’s eye level once more.

 

Cody nodded and said “Please bring her back,”

 

Gently wrapping his arms around his son, Leo suddenly felt that emotion that Master Splinter had told him long ago: the feeling of complete peace within family.

 

“I vow to bring us all back,” Leo whispered into his boy’s hair.

 

“Come on, we need to get to that warehouse,” Nobody told them all.

 

“Raph, if Plan A fails, call Plan C,” Leo told him before they left the apartment.

 

“Plan C?” Casey asked Raph.

 

“Master Splinter. Which I am calling him now, just in case Plan A does fail and we can just go into action,” Raph replied and called up Master Splinter.

 

 

* * *

 

Her throat was dry and hoarse. Her muscles spasmed from being tortured from the tasered too much. Her mind wasn’t taking in the pain at the moment but, later she knew she would be sore. Her arms were tied behind her to a wooden chair; her feet tied to the front legs of it.

 

“So will you tell me the pin number?” the collected charmed voice asked her.

 

“I don’t know it!” Ari argued back; her voice breaking.

 

“Petty. I wonder how your son would feel if he sees you like this?” Ruffington bated her.

 

Arienne didn’t fall for it.

 

“I wonder, how he would feel when his mother is cold dead?” Ruffington asked tauntingly.

 

Not giving up, Ari struggled to get free.

 

“Now, tell me the pin code and I can make your family’s debt zero once more,” Ruffington ordered her.

 

“I don’t know it you moron!” she told him once more.

 

Suddenly you could hear a broken woman’s voice screaming loudly within the warehouse. It made Leo sick to his stomach.

 

After another couple of minutes of painful torture of the taser, Ari rested against the chair; panting heavily.

 

“Pin code,” Ruffington stated, smiling.

 

WHAMP!

 

“AH!” Ruffington yelled as he kicked in the chest as Leonardo glared at him.

 

“I got your pin code!” Leonardo snarled at Ruffington.

 

Hazily looking up at the back of Leo, Ari twitched and breathed oddly.

 

“What…what are you?” Ruffington demanded.

 

“Your worst nightmare,” Leo hissed low.

 

Ruffington then pulled out a gun from inside his shirt, took aim and shot at Leo. Leo jumped up and dodged the laser bullets.

 

Plan A had fallen apart fast when Leo had heard Ari screaming like that. He knew that he would never get her screaming out his soul.

 

The others spread out within warehouse 71. Nobody jumped down and started to help with Leonardo of getting Ari out of the firing line of the bullets.

 

Donatello was searching for the power grid; Silver Sentry was watching above the warehouse, Tsunami and Chrysalis were also fighting the members of the foot that suddenly appeared.

 

“Leonardo! The Foot,” Silver Sentry informed him as more Foot Clan arrived.

 

“No,” he whispered as he pulled out his double katanas and jumped into the air.

 

He landed next to Ruffington and sliced the gun in half and jumped away.

 

KABOOM!

 

“AAH!!” Ruffington yelled in pain.

 

“Ruffington, what is going on with that order!” an all familiar deep voice greeted Leo’s ears.

 

“Sentry!” Leo ordered to him.

 

Before they had entered the warehouse, Leonardo had given a very intense warning to not use Arienne’s name. Leo already felt bad that 1 bad guy had gotten to her; he didn’t need every villain to know that they were connected.

 

Silver Sentry swooped down and picked up Ari as she had been watching Leo fight.

 

“Leo,” she whispered low.

 

“Ah-ah. Save that strength. They’ll be fine,” Silver told her as he flew away from the warehouse.

 

Back inside, it was like a gun and fighting war had gone off. Leonardo was battling Hun, Donatello was fighting with the foot ninjas, Tsunami and Chrysalis were still fighting against the Foot ninjas but working their way towards Donny and Nobody was battling it out with Ruffington.

 

Leo was getting tired of this. Ari was safe now; they no longer needed to be here.

 

Giving Hun a good kick in the stomach and slicing his katana through his long hair, Leo then did a round house kick and sent Hun flying.

 

“AAH!!” he screamed and smacked his head against some stone, knocking him out.

 

The Foot ninjas were being defeated too as Nobody and Ruffington were still firing guns at one another.

 

“Nobody! Come on!” Leo ordered him.

 

“I’ll stay behind, go without me!” he yelled back.

 

“What? No!” Leo said, holding out his hand towards his friend and ally.

 

One laser bullet had hit Ruffington and Nobody.

 

“Nobody!” Donny exclaimed.

 

The gun fighting was to a halt. The Foot Ninjas were actually running away from the warehouse as two bodies had hit the concrete floor.

 

Leonardo ran towards Nobody; slipping his finger under the gloves and searching for his pulse.

 

“He’s alive,” Leo informed Donny as he looked where that bullet had hit their friend.

 

“But not for long, we have to get out of here Leo,” Don informed him.

 

“Let me take him to the hospital,” Chrysalis requested as she picked him up and flew out of the warehouse.

 

Leonardo had looked over to where the body of Carl P. Ruffington laid with a pool of red blood surrounding him.

 

“To make sure that no one gets to these and to remember to never mess with my family, burn this place to the ground,” Leonardo ordered the others.

 

Donny and the others nodded. Leo looked back to where Hun had fallen, but had found out that he was missing with the blood trail marks leading away from the warehouse.

 

“Let’s go,” Leo ordered and they ran out of there.

 

While they ran, Donny brought out a detonator and pressed the red button on it.

 

BOOM!

 

KABOOM!!

 

BOOM!

 

All over the warehouse, the explosives were set off.

 

Leonardo watched as all of it went up in smoke and ash.

 

“Come on Leo. Let’s go home,” Don told him, gently pulling him back to April’s.

 

 

* * *

 

When Leo had walked up the metal spiral stair case, he was awfully nervous.

 

No one said anything as he stayed in the shadows. He noticed that Ari was on the couch, it was dark in April’s apartment and Cody was probably in the guest bedroom.

 

April walked over to him, tapped his arm and pulled him into the kitchen.

 

“I had a doctor come and check her out. She’s in a bad way Leo but, will heal given two weeks. She kept asking about you. I couldn’t tell her and so I gave her a sedative that will keep her out of pain until morning. How did it go at the warehouse?” April informed him.

 

Leo nodded and then whispered back “She won’t have to worry about Ruffington coming after her or her family anymore. We ran into Hun and the Foot. Most of them ran away, including Hun,”

 

April nodded and then whispered “Whenever you give her, her Christmas present just make sure it’s from your heart,”

 

Scraping his foot against the tile of the kitchen floor, Leo nodded. He didn’t like doing this. Wasn’t tonight enough for Arienne to know that he leads a dangerous life?

 

April had walked to the master bedroom, leaving her friend to his thoughts. She knew he would do the right thing.

 

Across the room, into the living room, Ari had witnessed and heard the whole thing. She didn’t take her sedative until she saw with her own eyes that Leonardo and the others were safe. She was in severe pain but she had to put her worries to rest.

 

Putting the pill in her mouth and gently drinking her glass of water, she swallowed the horrid thing. Very soon, she snuggled into the pillow and was fast asleep.

 

Mikey walked over to Leo whispered “What are you going to do now?”

 

“Let her heal. We all need the rest and I will come back in two weeks. Mikey, I may need you to help me from seeing her, until Christmas Eve night turning into Christmas,” Leo whispered back, his eyes set on the sleeping form.

 

Rubbing his neck, Mike then replied low “I don’t know Leo. You can be very stubborn when you focus on something. But I will help in any way that I can. Come on; let’s go back to lair,”

 

Leo walked through the kitchen, across the living room and towards the couch. He knelt down, fixed Air’s blankets and leaned down to kiss her cheek.

 

“I will return, Ari. Don’t be upset with me, please?” he whispered low above her ear.

 

“Mmm…No,” she mumbled back to him.

 

He couldn’t help the smile that formed and kissed her once more and then left.

 

In the morning, Ari didn’t ask for Leo. She didn’t ask for anything as Cody had started to take care of her with April and Casey’s help.

 

 

* * *

 

Two weeks had passed and even though that were slow and hellish, Leonardo finally was allowed out of the lair. He carried a big sack of presents and ran across the rooftops.

 

April had given him Ari’s new address. Strangely enough, it was the same house that she first had when she had moved out of her parent’s home.

 

Leo sneaked his way into her bedroom and tipped toed down the stairs, hallway and stairs once more. He could hear Christmas music softly playing as it was night out. The shadows jumped out at you; making things look scary then need be.

 

Gently putting the sack down, he walked over to the couch and smiled. Ari was lying there with a blanket over her.

 

“Ari?” he asked carefully.

 

She opened her warm brown eyes and looked up at him.

 

The only light that was on was from the fireplace.

 

“Leo?” she asked in returned.

 

“Hi,” he greeted, walking over and kneeling before her.

 

“What…this has to be a dream,” she said, not quite believing it.

 

He reached out and gently took her hand into his, rubbing her skin and then kissing the top of her hand.

 

“Not dreaming. It’s really happening,” he told her, smiling softly.

 

Shock flooded through Ari’s body, her eyes zeroed in on him. Leo waited patiently for her to snap out of her shock.

 

She blinked and then started to eye scan him from head to toe.

 

“The picture has no justice to the real thing,” She mumbled mostly to herself.

 

“You’re…you’re not upset on how I look?” Leo asked her, not sure on what she had said.

 

“No? I saw a giant mutant, walking and talking, rat while I was being tended to at April’s,” she reminded him.

 

Swallowing thickly, Leonardo blushed and looked down.

 

“Master Splinter,” he corrected her.

 

He felt a tug on his right arm, his eyes glided up to hers.

 

“Lay next to me?” she asked him.

 

“Are you sure? The doctors have said that-”

 

“Please?” she cut him off.

 

Sighing, Leo stood up, gently maneuvered his body around hers and snuggled into her body as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

 

“Better?” he whispered into her ear.

 

“Yes, and you’re not that bad,” she teased him.

 

Thankfully it was still night out or Raph would tease him for well forever on how deep he blushed.

 

His dragon within his soul was content for now.

 

“How are you?” he asked her again.

 

“Have you ever had nightmares from the events of your life?” she asked him instead.

 

“Of course I have. It is only through meditation and working out and learning to cope with it have I ever found peace. I can teach you some of it,” he replied, snuggling and finding her neck.

 

“I would like that because Cody hasn’t been getting that much sleep whenever I scream in my nightmares,” she told Leo, which halted his movements.

 

“It is normal for people to relive the traumatic events in their dreams. It is the way of the human mind working itself out. Now, you need to help it along even more, with working out,” Leo replied back.

 

Ari turned onto her back, looking up at him. For the longest time, she wondered what he looked liked without his mask on. Reaching up, she untied it and it fell away from his face.

 

Leonardo held very still. This was all a part of her gift. Even if he didn’t like it, he was doing this for her.

 

The fire light had a soft touch to his face as she ran her thumb across his cheek.

 

“Relax, please? We’re not doing anything but cuddling into one another,” she said to him.

 

Leo heavily sighed and rested against her body lightly.

 

“You know, I always wanted a turtle,” she said with a warm smile.

 

“Ha, ha. I’m not a pet,” Leo protested.

 

“I never said ‘pet’ Leo,” she teased him and smiled more.

 

“Uh huh,” he winked at her.

 

It was then that Leo had leaned down, cupped her face with his hands and softly pressed his lips to hers. It was a hesitant and a bit awkward, first tender kiss.

 

Leo pulled back and rested his forehead against Ari’s, breathing deeply to collect his thoughts. Her hands ran up and down on his sides slowly.

 

Suddenly and a high sounding squeak escaped his lips. He gazed into Ari’s eyes in panic.

 

“It’s okay,” She calmly told him.

 

“H-how could _that_ be _OK_?” he squeaked again.

 

Her hands stilled, leaned up and kissed him once more on the lips.

 

“Because male turtles chirp when they are horny,” she whispered against his lips and kissed him again.

 

He followed after her lips, pressing his lips once more to hers. Lingering, soft, exploring. This was all very new to Leonardo and he didn’t want to rush it.

 

Leo made sure to come back to that information that she had stored away, but he was content with just kissing. Ari hummed softly, nibbling his lower lip when he pulled back again.

 

Putting all of his body weight on her, he rested his right ear on top of her beating heart.

 

“Ari…” He panted.

 

“Yes?” she breathed deeply.

 

“Have you done this before?” he asked her.

 

“With guys who I thought I loved. For now, rest,” she replied, leaning up and kissing his forehead.

 

Shivers raced up and down his back, his breathing shortened and he tried to keep his legs together.

 

Arienne pulled a blanket over them both. When she heard the soft snoring that Leo was making, she pulled out his shell cell.

 

“Yes?” Donny asked curiously.

 

“Leo will be staying at my place. He’s fast asleep,” Ari replied back.

 

“OK, just make sure you don’t hurt him,” Don warned her.

 

“And _why_ would _I_ be _like_ Karai?” Ari asked in return.

 

“We just don’t like to see him hurt,” Don expressed.

 

“And neither do I. He will see you some time tomorrow. Good night,” Ari told Donny and hung up.

 

 

* * *

 

In the morning, Leonardo had woken up. He looked around for his mask but had found it was back on his face.

 

Was all of last night, was that of a dream?

 

Getting up, he walked towards the kitchen.

 

“Leo!” Cody greeted him happily.

 

“Good morning, Cody,” Leo replied back.

 

“What kind of tea do you like?” Ari’s sweet voice washed over Leo.

 

He turned and looked at her. There casually leaning against the corner of her kitchen was Arienne. Leo looked her over as she was wearing jeans, a soft looking cozy long sleeved sweater with her hair down. In her hands she was holding a coffee mug with what looked liked to be coffee.

 

“Green tea would be nice,” Leo replied back to her.

 

And suddenly, like before, Leo panicked. It was daylight out, he was hanging in the doorway and Ari could plainly see him.

 

“Deep breathes,” She told him, getting his filled mug with water in it, heated up in the microwave.

 

“I….” Leo tried to speak but his throat closed up.

 

“April and some man named Casey Johns? Stopped by and gave us these two boxes filled with Japanese stuff!” Cody expressed excitedly to Leonardo.

 

“It’s Casey Jones, not Johns, Cody. And I was going to look through it to give to you and Ari,” Leo corrected his son.

 

“Oh I know, just like giving him a hard time,” Cody replied smiling.

 

“Cody,” Ari warned him.

 

“Sorry Mom. I will stop teasing Mr. Jones,” Cody recited back to her.

 

Beep. Beep. Beep.

 

Ari got out Leo’s mug filled with hot steamy water and pulled out a green tea bag.

 

“What do you put in it? Sugar, milk?” she asked him curiously.

 

“Uh may I do it?” Leo asked her back.

 

“Sure,” She replied and got out of his way.

 

Leo walked towards the corner and started to fix his tea. He didn’t know how he felt about Arienne finally knowing what he looked like now.

 

“Did you sleep well last night?” she softly asked him.

 

“I did, thank you. I hope I wasn’t too …loud of a snorer,” he replied, blushing heavily.

 

“You weren’t. Though, you ready to open up the presents?” she asked Leonardo, smiling at him.

 

“Presents? What are you talking about? Isn’t Christmas”

 

“-Today. Christmas is today, Leo,” she interrupted him.

 

“TODAY?” He exclaimed in shock.

 

“Yeah. I had asked Cody to be patient on opening them up because you were still sleeping. He didn’t like it,” she explained pointing to the now empty chair in the kitchen and Cody was gone.

 

After Leo had fixed his tea, he sipped it and it was good. He looked over at Arienne and walked over to her.

 

Leaning down and softly pressing his lips to hers, he kissed her.

 

“Good Morning and Merry Christmas Ari,” he mumbled against her lips.

 

She smiled and kissed him back.

 

“Good morning and Merry Christmas, Leonardo,” she whispered back.

 

“Air? May I PLEASE open my presents now?” Cody complained from the living room.

 

“You may, Cody,” both Leo and Ari told him.

 

“YAAAY!!” He cheered and there was shredding of paper sounds.

 

“What do you think?” Leo whispered to Ari.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“On how I look? I’m not human, Arienne. I never was, even before the alien ooze fell on my brothers and I,”

 

“I am still getting use to seeing you in person and not on a picture,”

 

“Yes it is different in person,” he said, settling them both on the couch now.

 

Arienne smiled as she snuggled and leaned against him. Cody was still opening his presents.

 

“Do we have any presents?” Leo whispered next to her ear.

 

“Yes, but I think we opened a lot of them last night,” She whispered back, smiling.

 

Leonardo blushed hard.

 

Cody got up and brought over a large pile that had Leo’s name on the presents and then got his mother’s.

 

“Open them! Open them!!” he demanded smiling.

 

Ari got up and then walked over to an empty space as she sat down there. Leo followed her example and they both started to open their presents too.

 

“Where did these come from?” Leo asked, seeing some of the writing look familiar.

 

“Your family and friends. April was in here putting them under the tree while you slept,” Cody replied, trying out his new remote controlled airplanes from World War I and World War II.

 

“Merry Christmas Cody,” Ari said smiling to him.

 

He walked over and hugged her with “Merry Christmas Mom,”

 

Leo watched the two.

 

Ari and Cody smirked as they then got up and tackled Leo to the ground.

 

“AAH!” he shouted in surprise but started to laugh.

 

“Merry Christmas Leonardo,” They both told him.

 

Smiling at his new family, Leo then replied back “Merry Christmas,”

 

**FIN.**

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! It would be so kind of you to leave a review on what you thought of it. Thank you!
> 
> Alonia143.


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